I^IBRARY 

OF  THE 

1 

University  of  California. 

.i 

RECEIVED   BY  EXCHANGE 

Class 

» 

THE  LIBRARY 

IN 

COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 


THE  LIBRARY 

IN 

COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 


BY 

AUSTIN  BAXTER  KEEP,  A.M. 


SUBMITTED  IN  PARTIAL  FULFILMENT 
OF  THE  REQUIREMENTS  FOR  THE 
DEGREE  OF  DOCTOR  OF  PHILOSOPHY 
IN  THE  FACULTY  OF  POLITICAL 
SCIENCE,  COLUMBIA   UNIVERSITY 


NEW  YORK 

THE  DE  VINNE  PRESS 

1909 


Copyright,  1909,  by 
The  New  York  Society  Library 


1-^^"',% 


i/- 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

PREFACE IX 

INTRODUCTION 
THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK,  1698-1776  ...        3 

1.  The  Bray  Foundation,  or  the    Library  of  Trinity 

Parish,  1698-1776 8 

2.  The  Sharpe  Collection,   given  in   1713  to  found  a 

*'Publick  Library  "  at  New  York 43 

3.  The  Millington  Bequest,  or  the  Corporation  Library, 

1730-1776 64 

4.  The  New  York  Society  Library,  founded  in  1754      .      .      83 

5.  The  Library  of  King's  College,  1757-1776       ....      84 

6.  Booksellers' Circulating  Libraries,  1763-1776       .      .      .101 

7.  The  Union  Library  Society  of  New  York,  1771-1776    .112 
Summary  and  Conclusion 118 

I.  THE  FOUNDING  OF  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY 

LIBRARY,  1754 123 

II.   FIRST  STEPS,   1754-1772 148 

III.   FROM  THE  ROYAL  CHARTER,  1772,  TO  THE 

REVOLUTION,   1776 179 


233001 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGE 


Page  from  Dr.  Bray's  "Apostolick  Charity,"  1698     .     .       9 

Page  from  Bray  catalogue  (MS.),  1697 14 

Page  from  catalogue  in  Trinity  Vestry  minutes,  1698  .  15 
Scarred  labels  on  surviving  Bray  Book,  1697  ....  25 
Page  from  Trinity  Vestry  catalogue,  1705-1715     ...     34 

Robert  EUiston's  bookplate,  1725 38 

Later  EUiston  bookplate   (undated) 41 

First  page  (MS.)  of  Rev.  John  Sharpe's  diary,  1704  .  .  48 
First  page  (MS.)  of  Sharpe  Proposals,  1713  ....  53 
Autograph  letter  from  Mayor  and  Common  Council,  1729     71 

Joseph  Murray's  bookplate 85 

Signature  of  Rev.  Dr.  Bristowe 87 

Dr.  Duncombe  Bristowe's  bookplate 92 

British  proclamation  in  newspaper,  1777 96 

Bookplate  of  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel     .   100 
Common  Council  on  Union  Library  Society  petition,  1774  117 
Label  on  Clarendon  history,  1711  .......   119 

Earliest  press  notice  of  Society  Library,  1754     ....   137 

First  page  (MS.)  of  Subscription  Articles,  1754     .     .     .   154 

First  bookplate  of  Society  Library,  1758 168 

Contemporary  copy  (MS.)  of  Charter,  1773  ....  183 
Title-page  of  earliest  surviving  catalogue,  1758    ....   197 


PREFACE 

In  the  spring  of  1904  occurred  the  one  hundred  and  fiftieth 
anniversary  of  the  founding  of  the  New  York  Society  Library, 
by  far  the  oldest  Library  in  this  State  and  one  of  the  earliest 
literary  organizations  in  the  country,  dating  from  colonial  times 
with  incorporation  by  royal  letters  patent  under  the  British 
Crown.  To  signalize  the  event  its  Board  of  Trustees  decided  to 
issue  a  commemorative  volume,  whose  preparation  was  entrusted 
to  me  by  the  Publication  Committee,  Messrs.  George  V.  N. 
Baldwin,^  Beverly  Chew,  L.H.D.,  and  Henry  C.  Swords.  Soon 
after  undertaking  the  work,  I  became  curious  to  discover  more 
about  even  earlier  attempts  at  establishing  Libraries  in  New 
York,  fugitive  allusions  to  which  appear  in  scattered  records 
and  books,  and  significant  vestiges  of  which  are  to  be  seen  in  the 
Society  Library  itself.  Presently  it  grew  clear  that  the  real 
origin  of  the  movement  was  to  be  looked  for  across  the  water, 
and,  thanks  to  the  commendable  care  with  which  English  insti- 
tutions in  general  have  preserved  their  records,  the  desired  con- 
firmatory documents  were  found  in  various  libraries  and  archives 
abroad. 

Inasmuch  as  nothing  more  than  brief  outlines  had  ever  been 
published  concerning  early  Library  development  in  New  York, 
and  investigation  at  once  revealing  the  perpetuation  of  error 
and  confusion,  the  writer  determined  to  add  an  introductory 
chapter  to  cover,  so  far  as  possible,  this  neglected  ground. 
Upon  completion  the  monograph,  together  with  the  first  three 
chapters  of  the  history  of  the  Society  Library,  from  1754  to 
1776,  under  title  of  "The  Library  in  Colonial  New  York,"  was 
approved  by  Professors  William  M.  Sloane  and  Herbert  L. 
Osgood  as  the  dissertation  required  toward  my  doctorate  in 

1  On  the  death  of  Mr.  Baldwin,  in  February,  1908,  his  place  was  taken  by- 
Mr.  Frederic  de  P.  Foster. 


X  PREFACE 

philosophy  in  the  school  of  Political  Science  in  Columbia  Uni- 
versity, the  thesis  being  by  them  denominated  "a  culture-study 
in  American  history."  The  Publication  Committee  of  the  So- 
ciety Library  having  graciously  offered  me  the  use  of  the  neces- 
sary plates,  the  following  pages  are  printed  as  "separates"  from 
the  original  volume.^ 

Cordial  acknowledgment  is  therefore  made  of  this  generous 
action,  as  also  of  manifold  individual  attentions  received  from 
members  of  the  Committee  and  from  Mr.  F.  Augustus  Schermer- 
horn,  long  a  Trustee  of  both  the  Society  Library  and  Columbia 
University.  I  wish  further  to  record  in  hearty  appreciation  of 
courteous  assistance  and  sympathetic  interest  the  following 
names:  Mr.  Worthington  C.  Ford,  formerly  of  the  Library  of 
Congress;  Director  J.  Franklin  Jameson,  LL.D.,  and  Miss 
Frances  G.  Davenport  of  the  department  of  historical  research 
of  the  Carnegie  Institution,  Washington ;  Professor  Herbert  L. 
Osgood,  LL.D.,  Supervisor  Frederic  W.  Erb  of  the  Loan  Divi- 
sion, Secretary  Frederick  P.  Keppel  and  former  Registrar 
Rudolf  Tombo,  Jr.,  Ph.D.,  of  Columbia  University;  the  late 
Rev.  Dr.  Morgan  Dix,  former  Rector,  the  Rev.  William  T.  Man- 
ning, D.D.,  Rector,  Mr.  Hermann  H.  Cammann,  Comptroller, 
and  Chief  Clerk  W.  F.  L.  Aigeltinger  and  Mr.  Charles  L.  Foster 
of  the  clerical  staff  of  Trinity  Parish;  the  Rev.  Dr.  Howard 
Duffield,  Pastor,  Colonel  Charles  H.  Olmstead,  Clerk  of  the 
Session,  and  Treasurer  James  Henry  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church ;  the  Rev.  Shepherd  Knapp,  formerly  of  the  Brick  Pres- 
byterian Church;  Messrs.  John  S.  Bussing,  Elder,  and  Charles 
S.  Phillips,  Clerk,  of  the  Collegiate  Dutch  Church;  Librarians 
Wilberforce  Eames  of  the  Lenox  Branch  of  the  New  York  Pub- 
lic Library,  A.  J.  F.  van  Laer  of  the  State  Library  at  Albany, 
Charles  K.  Bolton  of  the  Boston  Athenaeum,  James  G.  Barnwell 
of  the  Library  Company  of  Philadelphia,  Richard  Bliss  of  the 
Redwood  Library  of  Newport,  Ellen  M.  FitzSimons  of  the 
Charleston  (S.  C.)  Library  Society,  Bernard  C.  Steiner,  Ph.D., 
of  the  Enoch  Pratt  Free  Library  and  Lawrence  C.  Wroth  of 
the  Maryland  Diocesan  Library,  Baltimore,  Mrs.  Florence  E. 
Youngs  of  the  New  York  Genealogical  and  Biographical  So- 

"^  History  of  the  New  York  Society  Library.     The  DeVinne  Press,  New  York, 
1908.     Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  selling  agents. 


PREFACE  xi 

ciety,  William  Nelson  of  the  New  Jersey  Historical  Society, 
Dr.  Samuel  A.  Green  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society, 
Albert  C.  Bates  of  the  Connecticut  Historical  Society,  Mabel  L. 
Webber  of  the  South  Carolina  Historical  Society;  the  Libra- 
rians of  the  British  Museum,  the  Universities  of  Oxford,  Cam- 
bridge, Aberdeen  and  Glasgow,  Lambeth  and  Fulham  Palaces, 
Sion  College,  Dr.  Bray's  Associates,  and  the  Society  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts;  the  Rev.  Sadler 
Phillips,  Vicar  of  St.  Etheldreda,  Fulham  Palace  Gates,  Lon- 
don ;  the  Ven.  Archdeacon  W.  J.  Armitage,  Rector  of  St.  Paul's 
Church,  and  Dr.  Harry  Piers,  Director  of  the  Provincial  Mu- 
seum, Halifax,  and  Canon  F.  W.  Vroom,  Librarian  of  King's 
College,  Windsor,  Nova  Scotia;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  Austin 
Stevens,  Mrs.  Schuyler  Van  Rensselaer,  Mr.  Samuel  Verplanck 
Hoffman,  President  of  the  New  York  Historical  Society,  Mrs. 
William  Henry  Shankland,  Miss  Kate  O.  Petersen,  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Edward  T.  Corwin,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Arthur  Wentworth  Eaton, 
Mr.  Charles  Alexander  Nelson,  formerly  Reference  Librarian  of 
Columbia  University,  Mr.  Philip  H.  Waddell  Smith  of  Pitts- 
burgh, Mr.  Henry  W.  Kent  of  the  Metropolitan  Museum,  Mr. 
Frederick  W.  Jenkins  and  Newel  Perry,  Ph.D.,  besides  other 
personal  friends. 

Especial  indebtedness  is  gratefully  acknowledged  to  the  late 
James  H.  Canfield,  LL.D.,  Librarian  of  Columbia  University, 
for  reading  first  proofs  of  the  entire  text,  in  addition  to  kind 
suggestions  at  every  stage  of  the  work;  to  State  Historian 
Victor  H.  Paltsits  for  contributions  and  critical  comments ;  to 
the  Rev.  Joseph  Hooper  and  to  Librarians  Frank  B.  Bigelow  of 
the  Society  Library,  Edward  H.  Virgin  of  the  General  Theo- 
logical Seminary,  and  Robert  H.  Kelby  and  Assistants  William 
A.  Hildebrand  and  Alexander  J.  Wohlhagen  of  the  New  York 
Historical  Society  for  continuous  resourcefulness  and  invaluable 
aid;  to  Mr.  John  R.  Todd,  to  whose  photographic  skill  and 
gratuitous  services  the  admirable  character  of  much  of  the  illus- 
trative material  is  due;  to  Mr.  Arthur  P.  Monger,  London 
photographer,  for  the  personal  attention  and  excellent  results 
that  mark  his  reproductions  of  ancient  manuscripts  and  title- 
pages  ;  to  Mr.  John  B.  Pine,  Clerk  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
Columbia  University,  for  his  sustaining  enthusiasm  and  material 


xii  PREFACE 

cooperation ;  and  to  my  brother,  William  Dickinson  Keep,  whose 
antiquarian  interest  and  fraternal  regard  have  made  possible 
the  great  number  of  excerpts  and  data  from  sources  in  the 
United  Kingdom. 

Nor  can  I  conclude  these  prefatorial  words  without  recording 
in  deepest  appreciation  and  respect  my  lasting  obligations  to 
the  gentlemen  of  the  Faculty  for  their  unfailing  consideration 
and  encouragement,  as  well  as  for  the  constant  stimulus  of  their 
scholarship. 

Austin  Baxter  Keep 

Hartley  Hall,  Columbia  University 
April  7,  1909 


INTRODUCTION 


THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 
1698-1776 


INTRODUCTION 


THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 
1698-1776 

IN  these  days  of  exploration  into  all  realms  of 
achievement  and  knowledge,  there  is  no  field  more 
proper  for  research  than  that  of  early  Library  de- 
velopment in  America.  So  marked  have  been  advances 
in  Library  science  within  recent  years,  and  so  increas- 
ingly bright  and  so  boundless  is  its  prospect,  that  there 
is  all  the  greater  reason  for  studying  the  beginnings  and 
early  days  of  the  movement.  The  subject  is  inviting 
and  full  of  promise,  none  the  less  that  its  sources  are 
scattered  and  difficult  of  access.  But  this  dauntless  age 
of  inquiry  demands  correct  and  full  information  con- 
cerning the  establishment  of  our  oldest  Libraries.  With 
reverent  curiosity  it  also  seeks  intelligence  of  earlier  en- 
deavors and  of  short-lived  institutions  that  fell  by  the 
wayside,  leaving  scarce  a  trace  to-day.  It  is  in  this  spirit 
that  the  present  study  has  been  made  of  conditions  in 
Colonial  New  York. 

Present-day  investigations  are  commonly  expected  to 
abound  in  revelations,  to  set  forth  an  array  of  revolu- 
tionary statistics,  to  throw  down  and  grind  to  powder 


4         THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

the  tablets  of  engraven  belief.  Only  to  a  local  and  not 
at  all  damaging  extent,  however,  will  such  expectation 
be  realized  in  this  portion  of  Library  research.  Its  dis- 
closures will  occasion  uneasiness  to  none  of  those  com- 
monwealths or  communities  that  cherish  landmarks 
along  the  Library  way.  Nothing  has  been  discovered 
that  can  possibly  ruffle  their  placid  contentment.  So  far 
as  New  York  is  concerned,  Virginia  may  forever  point 
to  its  Indian  massacre  of  1622  as  the  fell  destroyer  of 
the  earliest  College  Library  in  the  new  world.  ^  Massa- 
chusetts may  abide  in  serene  satisfaction  over  the  be- 
quest of  John  Harvard's  books  in  1638  to  the  institution 
that  bears  his  name  as  our  oldest  university  to-day ;  while 
Boston  justly  glories  in  having  had  a  "publike  Library" 
in  its  town  house  before  the  year  1675.^ 

Nor  is  there  the  least  disposition  on  the  part  of  New 
York  to  challenge  either  the  statement  of  South  Caro- 
lina's historian,  that  "there  can  be  little  doubt  that  the 
first  library  in  America  to  be  supported  in  any  degree  at 
the  public  expense  was  that  at  Charlestown  in  1698;"^  or 
the  equally  convincing  assertions  of  Maryland's  cham- 
pion, that  the  Bray  "provincial  library,"  sent  thither  in 
1697,  was  "probably  the  first  free  circulating  library  in 
the  United  States,"^  and  that  Governor  Nicholson's 
suggestion  of  the  same  year,  that  the  assembly  make 
provision  for  its  maintenance  and  increase,  was  "the  first 
recommendation  by  any  public  official,  that  a  part  of 

^The      "CoUedge      at      Henrico,"  ^  Edward  McCrady.    The  History 

founded  in  1620.     Horace  E.  Scud-  of  South  Carolina  under  the  Royal 

der.     "Public  Libraries  a  Hundred  Government.        New     York,      1899. 

Years  Ago,"  chap,  i  in  Public  Libra-  P.  508. 

ries  in  the  U.  8.    Washington,  1876.  *  Bernard  C.  Steiner.  "Rev.  Thomas 

Pp.  21-22.  Bray  and  his  American  Libraries." 

2  Charles  K.  Bolton  in  The  Influ-  The    American    Historical    Review, 

ence    and    History    of    the    Boston  New  York,  1897.    Vol.  II,  p.  73. 
Athenceum.     Boston,  1907.     P.  17. 


THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK         5 

the  public  funds  be  applied  to  the  support  of  a  free 
public  library."^ 

Furthermore,  in  the  chronological  procession  of  insti- 
tutions of  later  foundation,  existing  and  prosperous  to- 
day,—the  Library  Company  of  Philadelphia,  dating 
from  1731,  the  Company  of  the  Redwood  Library,  in- 
stituted at  Newport,  R.  L,  in  1747,  and  the  Charles- 
Town  (Charleston,  S.  C.)  Library  Society,  established 
in  1748,— the  New  York  Society  Library,  founded  in 
1754,  cheerfully  takes  fourth  place,  thereby  surrender- 
ing its  long-asserted  claim  to  have  dated  from  the  year 
1700.  This  act  is  none  the  less  gracious,— even  though 
the  question  of  precedence  has  never  been  seriously  agi- 
tated by  sister  institutions, —  for  the  present  investiga- 
tion has  been  conducted  in  the  name  of  the  Society 
Library,  now  become  sponsor  for  the  truth. 

First,  therefore,  it  may  be  well  to  quote  in  full  the 
latest  and  supposably  the  most  nearly  authentic  account 
of  Library  beginnings  in  New  York,  that  has  been 
printed  prior  to  the  preparation  of  this  monograph.  It 
reads  interestingly  as  follows,  in  a  chapter  entitled  "The 
City  under  Governor  John  Montgomerie,  1728-1732," 
by  the  Rev.  Daniel  Van  Pelt  in  the  "Memorial  History," 
published  in  1892: 

In  September,  17S8,  Governor  Montgomerie  received  word  that 
the  private  library  of  an  English  clergyman,  the  Rev.  John  Mill- 
ington,  had  been  bequeathed  by  him  to  the  Society  for  the  Prop- 
agation of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts ;  and  that  the  society — 
something  like  our  present  church  boards  of  foreign  missions, 
and  evidently  regarding  New- York  as  included  within  its  range 
of  operations  among  the  heathen — ^had  decided  to  bestow  Mr. 
Millington's  gift  of  books  upon  the  corporation  of  our  city. 

^  Ibid.,  p.  67. 


6         THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

There  were  a  little  over  1600  of  them,  a  fair  number  for  a  pri- 
vate library,  but  rather  a  modest  beginning  for  a  municipal  one. 
Naturally  the  prevailing  character  was  theological  or  devo- 
tional, though  doubtless  the  "Wits  of  Queen  Anne's  Time" — 
Pope,  Addison,  Steele,  Swift — found  a  place  among  them.  These 
volumes,  moreover,  were  not  the  first  donation  of  this  kind:  a 
smaller  collection,  also  formerly  the  private  library  of  a  clergy- 
man, was  already  in  the  possession  of  the  city.  This  had  been 
presented  in  1700  by  the  Rev.  John  Sharp,  Lord  Bellomont's 
chaplain  in  the  fort.  As  this  gentleman  was  still  living,  the 
authorities  now  gave  into  his  charge  the  hbrary  as  thus  mate- 
rially increased,  quarters  were  assigned  for  it  in  the  City  Hall, 
and  here  access  to  it  was  given  to  the  public  at  large.  Mr. 
Sharp,  however,  being  an  aged  man,  did  not  long  survive  his  ap- 
pointment ;  and  after  his  death  no  one  was  found  either  able  or 
willing  to  take  his  place.  Hence  the  City  Library  fell  into  sad 
neglect,  until  it  was  transferred  to  the  keeping  of  the  Society 
Library,  organized  in  1754,  becoming  thus  the  nucleus  of  the  in- 
stitution that  still  exists  and  flourishes  in  this  city  to-day.^ 

And  later  in  the  same  work,  in  a  section  devoted  to  the 
history  of  the  Society  Library,  appears  the  following 
paragraph,  authorized  by  that  institution  as  its  under- 
standing of  how  the  Library  movement  in  New  York 
originated : 

The  History  of  the  New-York  Society  Library  begins  in  the 

year  1700.     At  that  time  "The  Public  Library"  of  New-York 

was  founded  during  the  administration  of  the  Earl  of  Bellomont 

(Grahame's  "History  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  II,  p.  256). 

The  library  thus  organized  appears  to  have  gone  on  increasing, 

and  to  have  acquired  considerable  importance.     Several  folio 

volumes — now  in  the  possession  of  the  Society  Library — ^were 

presented  by  friends  in  London  in  1712 ;  and  in  1729  the  Rev. 

Dr.  MilHngton,  rector  of  Newington,  England,  bequeathed  his 

^  The    Memorial    History    of    the  article   on   early   Libraries   in    New 

City     of     New-York.       Edited     by  York,    in    Ainsworth    R.    Spofford's 

James    Grant   Wilson.     New   York,  A    Book    for    All    Readers.      New 

1893.     Vol.  II,  p.   194.     Statements  York,  1900.     Pp.  297-398. 
in  this  extract  form  the  basis  of  the 


THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK         7 

library  to  the  "Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in 
Foreign  Parts,"  and  by  this  society  it  was  presented  to  the  Pub- 
lic Library  of  New- York.  The  whole  collection  of  books  was 
placed  in  charge  of  the  corporation  of  the  city,  and  seems  to 
have  suffered  from  want  of  proper  attention  and  management 
until  the  year  1754,  when  an  association  of  individuals  was 
formed  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  on  such  an  institution  more 
efficiently.  On  the  application  of  these  gentlemen  [the  con- 
tributor here  by  mistake  gives  the  names  of  the  Trustees  who 
secured  the  charter  in  1772],  the  books  they  had  collected  were 
incorporated  with  the  Pubhc  Library,  and  the  whole  placed 
under  the  care  of  trustees  chosen  by  them.  The  institution  was 
known  at  that  time  as  "The  City  Library,"  a  name  by  which  it 
was  popularly  designated  up  to  about  the  year  1750  [1850].^ 

Without  pausing  to  correct  or  even  to  point  out  in- 
consistencies and  inaccuracies— not  to  mention  anachron- 
isms^—in  these  two  extracts,  which  so  well  and  fully 
represent  all  hitherto  published  knowledge  of  the  sub- 
ject, a  beginning  will  at  once  be  made  to  disclose  the 
actual  facts.  How  errors  crept  in  and  how  much  was 
forgotten  in  the  passage  of  the  indifferent  years,  and 
how,  in  the  absence  of  any  special  study,  misleading  re- 
ports came  to  be  accepted  as  fact,  will  all  appear  in  suc- 
ceeding pages  as  old  traditions  and  fables  are  explained, 
and  in  their  stead  is  unfolded  the  true  story  of  the 
Library  in  Colonial  New  York. 

^  Wentworth  S.  Butler.  "The  New-  dred    Years    Ago"    by    Horace    E. 

York  Society  Library,"  in  chap,  iii,  Scudder  (see  p.  4wJf),  as  also  of  Mr. 

"The  Libraries  of  New-York."     The  Van    Pelt's    sketch    quoted    above. 

Memorial  History.    Vol.  IV,  p.  106.  What  seems  to  have  been  a   fuller 

This   extract   is   taken   bodily,   with  and  more  nearly   accurate  account, 

but  trifling  changes,  from  an  "His-  however,  in  an  historical  address  de- 

torical     Notice"     published    in    the  livered  by  Chairman  de  Peyster  in 

Society  Library  Catalogue  of  1850,  1872,    is    not    known    to    have    been 

which   also   forms  the  basis   of  the  printed.    Chap.  IX,  infra. 

article  in  "Public  Libraries  a  Hun-  ^  See  pp.  43,  69-70. 


8         THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

1,  The  Bray  Foundation,  or  the  Library  of 
Trinity  Parish,  1698-1776 

So  far  as  known,  the  earliest  printed  mention  of  a  Li- 
brary as  an  institution  in  New  York  appears  in  an  ob- 
scure and  now  rare  little  book,  published  at  London  in 
1698,  with  one  of  the  inordinately  long  titles  then  com- 
mon, but  which  may  briefly  be  called  "Apostolick 
Charity."^  It  has  for  a  preface  "A  General  View  of  the 
English  Colonies  in  America,  with  respect  to  Religion; 
In  order  to  shew  what  Provision  is  wanting  for  the 
Propagation  of  Christianity  in  those  Parts."  Here, 
under  a  tabular  arrangement  into  Colonies,  Parishes  8^ 
Churches,  Ministers,  and  Libraries,  conditions  in  New 
York  are  thus  itemized :  "1  Church  in  the  Fort.  1  Church 
in  the  City.  2  Dutch  Churches.  1  French  Chtu^ch.  1 
Minister  in  the  Fort.  1  Minister  in  the  City.  2  Dutch 
Ministers.  1  French  Minister.  1  Library."  Further 
study  reveals  that  credit  for  establishing  the  last-named 
interest  belongs  to  the  learned  author  himself,  the  Rev. 
Thomas  Bray,  D.D. 

Born  at  Marton,  Shropshire,  in  1656,  a  graduate  of 
All  Souls'  College,  Oxford,  a  successful  pastor  and  an 
able  writer.  Dr.  Bray  had  been  appointed  by  the  Bishop 
of  London  in  April,  1696,  to  act  as  commissary  of  eccle- 
siastical affairs  in  Maryland.  This  post  he  was  "content 
to  accept,"  if  the  bishops  would  help  him  provide  "Pa- 
rochial Libraries"  for  the  use  of  the  missionaries  he  should 

^Apostolick    Charity,    its    Nature  tions.    By  Thomas  Bray,  D.D.    Lon- 

and  Excellence  Considered.     InaDis-  don,  1698.  The  copy  whose  title-page 

course  upon  Dan.  12.  S.     Preached  is  here   reproduced   is   in   the   New 

at  St.  Pauls,  Decemh.  19,  1697,  at  the  York  Public  Library.     An  author's 

Ordination  of  some  Protestant  Mis-  presentation  copy  is  in  the  Library 

sionaries  to  be  sent  into  the  Planta-  of  the  General  Theological  Seminary. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH 


in. 


Colonies. 


l^euy-TorL 


l.Long'IJlant^ 

Apopulous  Colony  beloa;- 
ingto  the  Government  bf 
New'York,  hawiw  indie 
JEaft-l>art  to  Englllh- 
To«vns>  wnerem  are  com- 
puted above  800  Panii- 
Itts  i  ana  in  the  Weft- 
part  9  Dutch -Toxvns, 
Mijerexn  are  upwaxds  of 
500  Fanulies. 


A  large  City, 
confilting  of 
400  Families, 
bordering  up- 
on XhtlndiattSy 
and  belong- 
ing to  the  Go- 
vernment ^ 
JSfm  Tork. 


IV 
V 

VI 


Eafi 


Newjcrfey 


Penjylvanh. 


^ar'tjhes  6c  Churches 

I  Church  in  the  Fort. 

1  Chnrch  in  the  City. 

2  Dutch  Churches. 
X  French  Church. 

1 3  Churches. 


1  Cbarch  in  the  Fort  for  the 
Garrifon,  con6fting  of  2 
Foot-Compames,  and  the 
Btgli/h  Inhabitants  of  the 
Town. 

I  JDutch  Church. 

I  Freftch  Church. 
I  SmMJh  Church. 

In  Btft-ferfey  there  are  8 
Towns,  no  Church. 

In  this  Province  there  are 
alfo  feveral  Towns. 

I  Church  at  PhilaM- 
phUy  having  a  coriC- 
derable  Number  of 
Chnrch  of  Fti^land 
Proteltants, 


hfimjiers 

I  Minifler 
iniheFort. 

1  Minifler 
in  the  City. 

2  Dutch 
Minillcrs. 

I  French 
Minilkr. 

Not  I  Cbutcb 
of  EvtgUnd 
Miniver,  the* 
much  defirM 
In  the£i¥/i/fe 
Part. 

3  Uutch  Mi- 
nifters  in  the 
Weft-part. 


1   Dutch 

Minifler. 
1  French 

Miniftcr. 
I  Swedijl} 
Minifler. 

I  Minifler 
going  over 

I  Minifler. 

1  School- 

Maflcr. 


Llhrarief 
1  Library. 


AUbiary 
b^ua. 

I  Library. 


Colonies. 

Second  page  (slightly  reduced)  of  preface  to  "  Apostolick  Charity,"  published  in  1698, 
containing  first  printed  mention  of  a  Library  in  New  York.    See  p.  8. 


10       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

send  to  America,  the  majority  of  whom,  he  said,  would 
be  of  "the  poorer  sort  of  Clergy,  who  could  not  suffi- 
ciently supply  themselves  with  books." ^  The  church 
dignitaries  cordially  endorsed  this  proposal,  believing 
that  his  "Design"  would,  "in  all  likelihood,  invite  some 
of  the  more  studious  and  virtuous  persons  out  of  the 
Universities  to  undertake  the  ministry  in  those  parts, 
and  be  a  means  of  rendering  them  useful,  when  they  are 
there."  ^  With  even  greater  earnestness  the  commissary 
himself  declared,  a  year  and  a  half  later: 

By  Experience,  as  well  as  the  Reason  of  the  Thing,  I  'm  con- 
vinc'd.  That  100  I.  laid  out  in  a  LIBRARY,  is  what  will  best 
induce  a  Learned  and  Sober  Minister  to  go  into  the  Service 
of  any  part  of  the  Church  in  the  Plantations ;  And  that  the  same 
is  a  necessary  Encouragement,  considering  that  few  Men  of 
Fortunes,  who  are  able  to  purchase  Books  for  themselves,  will 
go  into  such  remote  Parts.^ 

Although  for  political  reasons  Dr.  Bray  did  not  set 
out  for  his  new  field  until  1699,^  he  had  been  busy  choos- 
ing his  men  and  despatching  sundry  "book  presses"  over- 
sea. The  first  few  consignments  went  naturally  to 
Maryland  and  neighboring  provinces.  But  that  was 
only  the  beginning  of  his  plan.  Two  years  before,  he 
had  issued  a  brochure  with  a  similarly  interminable  cap- 
tion, "An  Essay  towards  promoting  all  Necessary  and 
Useful  Knowledge,  both  Divine  and  Human,  in  all  the 

^Dr.  Bray's  proposal  in  reply  to  ^  Apostolick  Charity,  -pp.  (iv-v). 
his     appointment     as     commissary.  *"He  took  his  Voyage  December 
Here  copied  from  "Memoir  of  Dr.  16,   1699,   and   arriv'd  in   Maryland 
Bray"  in  the  Report  of  Dr.  Bray's  after  an  extream  tedious  and  dan- 
Associates  for  1905,  pp.  31-32.  gerous  Passage,  the  12th  of  March 

^From    a    document    in    Lambeth  following";  but  within  the  year  he 

Palace    Library,    signed    by    Arch-  made    a    "speedy    Return,"    without 

bishops  Tenison  and  Sharpe  and  by  going    far,    if    at    all,    beyond    the 

Bishops    Compton,    Lloyd,    Stilling-  Maryland     border.       See     Publick 

fleet,  Patrick  and  Moore.     "Memoir  Spirit  Illustrated  .  .  .  (1st  edition), 

of  Dr.  Bray,"  p.  32.  pp.  26,  35. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  11 

Parts  of  His  Majesty's  Dominions,  both  at  Home  and 
Abroad."^ 

First  in  this  work  comes  a  six-page  homily  on  Know- 
ledge, "the  fairest  Ornament  of  the  Soul  of  Man,"  which 
"does  more  distinguish  the  Possessors  of  it  than  Titles, 
Riches,  or  great  Places:  .  .  .  whilst  the  Gaudy,  but 
Empty  Beau,  is  no  other  than  the  Scorn  and  Derision  of 
all  who  Converse  with  him."  Then,  fearing  lest  his  plans 
should  seem  too  limited  in  scope,  he  hastens  to  add: 
"Though  this  Design  seems  more  immediately  directed 
to  the  Service  of  the  Clergy,  yet  Gentlemen,  Physicians 
and  Lawyers  will  perceive  they  are  not  neglected  in  it." 
The  writer  next  addresses  "Proposals  to  the  Gentry  and 
Clergy  of  this  Kingdom,  for  Purchasing  Lending  Li- 
braries in  all  the  Deanaries  of  England,  and  Parochial 
Libraries  for  Maryland,  Virginia,  and  other  of  the  For- 
eign Plantations."  His  fully  matured  purpose  is  dis- 
closed in  this  quaint  and  touching  conclusion : 

In  short,  as  meer  Zeal  for  Publick  Service  hath  excited  me  to 
leave  no  Stone  unturn'd,  to  procure  Parochial  Libraries  for  the 
Plantations,  in  which  I  thank  God  I  have  had  hitherto  no  mean 
Success ;  .  .  .  Instead  of  Libraries  for  Maryland,  the  bounds  of 
my  first  Design,  I  shall  not  only  extend  my  Endeavours  for  the 
Supply  of  all  the  English  Colonies  in  America  therewith;  but 
can  most  willing  be  a  Missionary  into  every  one  of  those  Prov- 
inces, to  fix  and  settle  them  therein  when  they  are  obtain'd,  being 
so  fully  perswaded  of  the  great  Benefit  of  these  kind  of  Li- 
braries, that  I  should  not  think  'em  too  dear  a  Purchase,  even  at 

the  hazard  of  my  Life. 

J- 

A  complete  system  for  founding  and  "preserving"  Li- 
braries is  thereupon  elaborated.  Several  pages  are  filled 
with  titles  of  suitable  books,  comprising  works  in  all 

^  London,  1697.     A  copy  is  in  the  New  York  Public  Library. 


12       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

lines  of  literature,  especial  emphasis  of  course  being  laid 
on  theology.  In  passing,  it  might  be  of  interest  to  know 
how  many  collections  sent  to  America  owed  existence  to 
the  following  thrifty  scheme:  "That  what  Gratis-^ooks 
will  be  obtained  of  the  Bookseller,  in  consideration  of  so 
many  bought  of  'em  towards  these  Lending  Libraries; 
that  these  be  set  apart  towards  making  up  Parochial 
Libraries  for  the  Foreign  Plantations/^ 

The  origin  of  the  first  New  York  Library,  however, 
was  clearly  due  to  no  such  bonus  arrangement.  For  upon 
a  manuscript  catalogue— about  all  that  remains  of  this 
early  collection— the  price  of  each  volume  is  carefully 
annexed,  the  total  cost  amounting  to  exactly  £70.  This 
list  is  to-day,  as  it  has  been  for  nearly  two  hundred 
years,  in  the  possession  of  "Dr.  Bray's  Associates,"  a 
board  of  trustees  organized  by  that  good  man  in  1723  to 
found  Clerical  Libraries  and  for  the  education  of  negro 
slaves  in  the  colonies.  Under  this  heading,  "A  Register 
of  y®  Books  Sent  towards  Laying  y^  Foundacbn  of  a 
Provincial  Library  in  New  York,"  ^  appear  157  titles 
numbering  220  volumes,  grouped  into  the  following 
comprehensive  classification : 

I  The  H.  Script:  w^h  Commentators,  23;  II  Fathers,  7;  III 
Discourses  Apologetical,  9 ;  IIII  Bodies  of  Divinity  both  Cate- 
chetical &  Scholastical,  14;  V  On  y^  Genl  Doctrine  of  y^  Cov* 
of  Grace,  2,  and  On  the  Creed — both  y®  whole  Body  of  Cre- 
denda  &  on  particular  Articles,  18 ;  VI  Of  Moral  Laws  &  X^" 
Duties,  28 ;  VII  Of  Repent :  &  Mortificac'bn,  S ;  VIII  Of  Divine 
Assistance,  Prayer  and  y®  Sacram*^ — those  Means  of  perform- 

^The  title-page  of  the  MS.  from  AnopoUs  in  Mary   Land.     For   the 

which   this   list   is    copied    reads    as  use  and  Benefit  of  the  Clergy  and 

follows:     Bihliothecw     Provinciates  others  in  the  Provinces  of  New  Eng- 

AmericancB,  Being  the  Registers  of  land,     New      York,     Pennsylvania, 

Books    Sent    Towards    Laying    the  Carolina,  ^  Bermudas.   Vol.  II.    By 

Foundacbn  of  Five  more  'provincial  Thomas  Bray,  D.D. 
Libraries   in    Imitation    of    that   of 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  13 

ing  the  foregoing  Articles,  10 ;  IX  Sermons,  34 ;  X  Ministerial 
Directories,  5 ;  XI  Controversial,  19 ;  XII  Historical  and  Geo- 
graphical,— i  Humanity,  viz*  Ethicks  &  Oeconomicks,  6;  ii 
Polity  &  Law,  0;  iii  History  and  its  Appendages — Chronology, 
Geography,  Voyages  and  Travails,  23;  iiij  Physiology,  Anat- 
omy, Chirurgery  &  Medicine,  2 ;  v  Mathematicks  &  Trade,  0 ;  vi 
Grammars  &  Lexicons,  6 ;  vii  Rhetorick,  1 ;  viii  Logick,  1 ;  ix 
Poetry,  3 — Poetae  Antiqui,  Buchanani  Psalmi  12°,  Miltons 
paradise  Lost;  x  Miscellanies,  6.^ 

More  than  this  could  scarcely  have  been  asked  by  the 
most  ardent  booklover  of  that  day— from  the  point  of 
view  of  the  clergy,  that  is— in  the  way  of  subjects;  the 
only  remaining  desideratum  would  be  the  certainty  of 
substantial  and  frequent  increase,  an  interest  not  as 
thoroughly  furthered  by  the  broad-visioned  promoter,  as 
will  presently  appear.  Nevertheless,  the  arrangement 
just  quoted  deserves  more  than  passing  attention,  not 
alone  for  being  a  good  specimen  of  an  early  classification 
for  an  American  library,  but  also  for  its  admirable 
character  even  to-day;  while  the  hst  itself  comprises  the 
standard  works  of  the  period  for  a  clergyman's  library. 

That  the  little  assortment  reached  its  destination  is 
proved  by  a  fairly  exact  copy  of  the  catalogue  spread  in 
full  upon  the  old  manuscript  book  of  minutes  of  the 
vestry  of  Trinity  parish,  under  the  following  slightly 
altered  inscription:  "A  Register  of  the  Books  sent  to- 
wards laying  the  foundation  of  a  parochial  Library  in 

^  This    scheme    corresponds,    with  both    Divine    and   Humane,    a    MS. 

trifling    exceptions,    chiefly    in    the  work  now  in   the  Library   of   Sion 

omission    of    explanatory    notes,    to  College,  London.     A  transcript  is  in 

Dr.    Bray's    elaborate    classification  the     New     York     Public     Library. 

inhis  Bibliothecce  Americanw  Quadri-  Sion  College  is  a  sort  of  guild  or 

partitce;  or  Catalogues  of  the  Libra-  corporation  of  the  parochial  clergy, 

ries  sent  into  the  Severall  Provinces  rectors,  vicars,  lecturers  and  curates 

belonging  to  the  Crovm  of  England,  of  the  city  of  London  proper  and 

in  order  to  'promote  all  the  parts  of  immediate     suburbs,     having     been 

Usefull  and    Necessary    Knowledge  founded  about  the  year  1635. 


14       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 


(O 


/7a>t^^  ^Mf^aAxyA^o^t^  ofTu:!yji^^J^!'  /  .•  ^:  q 


<,    <:  ^„ 


J     3    o 


First  page  (reduced)  of  catalogue  of  Bray  books  brought  to  New  York  by  the  Earl  of  Bel- 
lomont.    Written  in  1697;  now  in  possession  of  Dr.  Bray's  Associates,  London. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  15 


J^^e^aZd  Cfi4Vtc/<    uxxtji^  cued  ^c>uii«i^»0'  ^acfvu  a  ^ou£f»il^ 


/  ^    Jff'M    //      _  .{^' 


^^t^  C^  9LiQijfer. 


y/- 


^fi^o<^'&: A^^'o-ttcje-^c^  i/^y^ 

Copy  (much  reduced)  of  Bray  catalogue  in  Trinity  Vestry  minutes,  written  in  1698. 


16       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

New  York  for  the  Use  of  the  Ministers  of  Holy  Trinity 
Church"!^  Though  at  first  sight  this  discrepancy  in 
phrasing  might  cause  a  shock  in  its  suggestion  of  per- 
verted funds,  fortunately  for  the  honor  of  the  venerable 
and  venerated  parish  in  question,  the  latter  style  ex- 
presses precisely  the  intention  of  the  founders.  This  is 
quite  apparent  from  the  set  of  rules  accompanying  the 
books,  written  as  early  as  1697  in  the  following  form: 

DIRECTIONS 

rroR  Y^  Use,  &  P^servation  of  y^  Library 

SENT  w^^  HIS  Excellency  the  Earl  of  Bellamont  to 

New  York  in  America 

Ffirst  y®  Cheif  Design  of  this  Library  is  for  y^  Use  of  y^ 
Church  of  England  Ministers  belonging  to  y^  Ffort,  &  City  of 
New  York,  &  for  y^  Chaplains  of  his  Majtl^  Ships  during  their 
Residence  in  y*  Port. 

Secondly  To  y^  End  y*  any  P^sons  concernd  may  have  a  freer 
Ingress,  &  Regress,  it  is  desir'd  y®  Books  may  be  fixt  in  some 
publick  Roome  in  y®  Ffort,  or  in  y®  Vestry  of  y^  Church  at  New 
York,  so  as  shall  be  most  Convenient  for  y®  Clergy  to  come  at 
y®  Use  of  'em. 

Thirdly  That  three  Registers  of  these  Books  be  made,  one 
whereof  to  Remain  w*^  y^  Ld  Bf)  of  London,  a  Second  w*^  his 
Excellency  y^  Govern^,  &  a  Third  to  remain  in  y^  Library. 

Ffor  y®  bett^  p^servation  of  em  it  is  desird  y*  y^  Gentlemen  of 
y®  Vestry  wou'd  yearly  Inspect  y^  Books  &  p^sent,  as  to  y® 
GovH,  so  to  y®  Ld  B|)  of  London  an  ace*  wheth^  they  are  Safe, 
or  anywise  Imbezeld  or  Lost.^ 

Richard  Coote,  first  Earl  of  Bellomont,  was  commis- 
sioned by  King  William  III  in  June,  1697,  as  royal  gov- 
ernor of  the  provinces  of  New  York,  Massachusetts  and 

^Trinity    vestry    minutes,    vol.    I,  fully  written  copy  are  to-day  pre- 

p.  200  et  seq.  served   in   the   collection    of   manu- 

*  The  original,  marked  "Duplicate"  scripts   left    by    Dr.    Bray   to    Sion 

in  pencil  in  a  later  hand,  and  a  care-  College. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  17 

New  Hampshire.  He  landed  in  New  York  city  April  2, 
1698,  after  a  tempestuous  passage  of  seven  months'  dura- 
tion. The  voyage  may  well  be  regarded  as  an  omen  of 
his  stormy  term  of  office,  whose  brief  three  years  were 
filled  with  bitter  quarrels.  His  efforts  to  counteract  the 
pohcy  of  his  notorious  predecessor.  Colonel  Benjamin 
Fletcher,— who  had  issued  territorial  grants  with  a  lavish 
hand,  and  who  was  almost  openly  in  league  with  piracy, 
— naturally  aroused  great  hostility  and  left  him  scant 
opportunity  to  patronize  an  infant  library.  Further- 
more, he  soon  became  involved  in  a  serious  personal  dif- 
ference with  the  Rev.  William  Vesey,  first  rector  of 
Trinity  parish,  so  that  harmony  between  them  on  any 
matter  was  wholly  impossible. 

In  due  time  the  governor  fulfilled  this  part  of  his  mis- 
sion, however,  for  the  Trinity  vestry  minutes  bear  this 
record  for  June  8,  1698:  "M^  Vesey  having  informed  y® 
Board  that  [he]  has  reced  from  his  Excel  Rich :  Earl  of 
Bellomont  a  parcell  of  Books  of  Divinity  sent  over  by  y^ 
right  Reverend  Henry  Lord  Bishop  of  London  for  y® 
Use  of  Trinity  Church  for  which  he  hath  given  a  receipt 
to  his  Excel  a  list  whereof  is  produced.  It  is  ordered  the 
books  remain  in  the  custody  of  M^  Vesey  untill  further 
order  and  that  y^  Clerk  do  register  the  Catalogue  of  the 
books  in  the  vestry  book."  ^ 

In  the  meantime,  what  may  have  been  the  nucleus  of  a 
Library  had  already  been  formed  in  a  gift  from  the  re- 
tiring executive.  Colonel  Fletcher,  who  had  shown  his 
good  will  to  Trinity  by  signing  its  original  charter.  May 
6, 1697,  and  in  the  granting  of  an  extensive  land  lease  to 
the  parish.     For,  at  a  vestry  meeting  held  March  26, 

^Trinity  vestry  minutes,  I,  25-26.       follow  at  once,  beginning  on  page 
The  "Catalogue,"  however,  does  not      200. 


18       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

1698,  "M^  David  Jamison  reports  that  his  Exce!  y^  Gov^ 
has  given  a  Bible  &  some  other  books  to  this  Corporation 
for  y®  use  of  Trinity  Church  w*^*^  are  Suppos'd  to  be  in  y® 
hands  of  M^  Symon  Smith.  Ordered  Capt  Wilson  & 
W"  Sharpas  do  waite  upon  M^  Smith  &  aske  for  y® 
Same."^ 

From  the  beginning,  the  vestrymen  of  Trinity  Church 
have  imiformly  been  influential  citizens,  and  these  early 
members  certainly  present  no  exception.  David  Jameson 
held  successively  the  oflices  of  deputy  secretary  of  the 
province,  clerk  of  the  assembly  and  city  recorder ;  Cap- 
tain Ebenezer  Willson,  for  years  city  treasurer,  had  been 
a  common  councilman  and  later  occupied  the  mayoralty 
from  1707  to  1710;  while  William  Sharpas,  confirmed  as 
town  clerk  in  the  Dongan  charter  in  1686,  held  that  im- 
portant post  until  his  death  in  1739.  Lastly,  the  Rev. 
Simon  Smith  was  chaplain  of  the  forces  in  the  fort  from 
1696  to  1700,  the  chapel  having  been  ordered  rebuilt  by 
Governor  Fletcher  in  the  year  1695.^ 

The  first  Trinity  Church,  which  stood  on  the  present 
site  on  land  formerly  a  portion  of  the  old  Dutch  West 
India  Company's  garden,  had  been  opened  for  public 
worship  in  March,  1698.  That  the  books  were  housed  in 
this  edifice,  doubtless  from  their  receipt,  is  plain  from  a 
letter  of  Mr.  Vesey's  to  Governor  Nicholson  of  Virginia, 

^Trinity  vestry  minutes,  I,  21-22.  Govr    Fletchers    carrying    over    an- 

^  Of  this  event  the  Rev.  John  Mil-  other  for  that  use  ^  purpose  in  ye 

ler,     chaplain,     1692-1695,     writes:  year    1692."     The    chapel    was    de- 

"The  Chappell  was  first  built  about  stroyed  early   in   1741    in   "the  late 

the  year  1630  but  growing  ruinous  fatal    fire    that    laid    in    ashes    the 

it  was  puU'd  Down  Ano  1694  ^  re-  house,    chaple,    barracks    &    Secre- 

built  in  ye  years  of  X  1695  ^  1696."  tary's  office  in  his  Majesty's  fort  in 

From   a  note   in  his   own  hand   on  this    Town."      Speech    of    Lt.-Gov. 

the  fly-leaf  of  a  great   Bible,  now  George  Clarke  to  the  Council,  April 

in  the  N.  Y.  Public  Library,  and  of  15,  1741.    Journal  of  the  Legislative 

which  he  says:  "This  Bible  belonged  Council,    1691-1743.     Albany,    1861. 

to  the  Chappell  in  the  Kings  fort  at  P.  769. 
New  York  %  fell  to  my  Lot  upon 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  19 

dated  June  9,  1702,  in  which  he  tells  how,  at  the  sugges- 
tion of  "his  Reverence  D^  Bray,"  a  "happy  Society"  of 
the  several  ministers  of  the  city  was  "maintained  in  the 
Church  Library."^ 

Other  lists,  also  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  Bray 
Associates,  show  that  additions  were  made  from  time  to 
time  to  the  original  collection.  For  example,  under  "A 
Catalogue  of  Books  Sent  Aug*  30*^  1701  to  New  York 
to  Improve  the  Library  at  New  York,"  appear  some 
twenty  titles  covering  twenty-four  volumes  of  sermons 
and  religious  treatises,  the  cost  of  each  book  being  en- 
tered as  before.  Again,  as  few  as  eight  volumes,  sim- 
ilarly devotional  in  character,  were  accompanied  with 
"A  Catalogue  of  the  Books  Sent  Apl  23, 1702  to  Augmt 
the  Library  at  New  York." 

Both  these  accessions  are  found  copied  in  the  Trinity 
vestry  minutes^  directly  following  the  first  "Register." 
A  supplementary  reference  to  the  subject  appears  in  the 
proceedings  of  June  2, 1701,  when  "The  Vestrey  Exam- 
ined the  Churches  Library  according  to  the  Catalogue 
Sent  from  D^  Bray  &  Signed  the  same  returned  with  an 
Acco*  of  what  books  were  wanting  &  w*  were  not  in  the 
Catalogue."^ 

The  next  consignment,  comprising  six  volumes,  is 
styled  in  the  church  records  "A  Catalogue  of  Books  Sent 
to  the  Library  Anno  1704."  Subsequent  donations,  how- 
ever, seem  to  have  come  from  private  sources,  full  credit 
for  the  gifts  being  expressed.    The  first  of  such  presents, 

^8.  P.  O.  Letter  Book   (copies).  Archives,    N.    Y.    M8S.,    I,  14-15. 

no.  112,  1702-1799.    The  archives  of  These  Hawks  papers  are  kept  in  the 

the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  Church  Missions  House,  4th  ave.  and 

the   Gospel   in   Foreign   Parts   have  32d  st.,  N.  Y.  city, 

been  for  years  at  no.  19  Delahay  st.,  ^  Vestry  minutes,  I,  208  et  seq. 

Westminster,  London.    A  later  copy  '  Ibid.,  I,  38. 
by  Dr.  Hawks  is  in  the  Gen,  Conv. 


20       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

a  collection  of  twelve  doctrinal  works,  is  entered  under 
"A  Catalogue  of  Books  given  to  the  Library  of  New 
York  by  Tho^  Byerly  Esq^  Colector  and  Receiver  Gen- 
eral of  the  province  of  New  York  of  the  Value  of  five 
pounds  Sterling  1704  &  brought  from  London  by  M^ 
Brett  1705."  Immediately  after  this,  acknowledgment 
is  made  of  some  books  "At  the  Same  time  Sent  by  the 
Bishop  of  London,"  including  prayer  books  and  "22 
Serious  Exortations  to  the  practice  of  Religious  Duties 
both  publick  and  private.  Sent  to  be  Distributed  among 
the  poor  by  the  Minister." 

Following  this  doubtless  most  comforting  benefaction 
comes  an  entry  well  calculated  to  awaken  antiquarian  at- 
tention. Thus  reads  the  record:  "Jariry  1712  Given  the 
Right  Hon^i®  the  Earle  of  Clarendons  y^  History  of  the 
Rebellion  &  Civil  Wares  in  3  Vol.  fol."^  And  interest 
centers  in  the  announcement  because  the  second  volume 
of  this  very  set  may  be  seen  to-day  in  the  New  York  So- 
ciety Library.  Natural  sentiment  attaching  to  this  ven- 
erable book,  a  pathetic  survivor  of  New  York's  first 
Library,  is  heightened  by  an  ornate  label  on  its  front 
cover,  bearing  in  gilt  letters  still  bright  the  clear-cut 
legend,  BELONGING  TO  Y^  LIBRARY  OF  NEW  YORK 
IN  AMERICA  1711. 

Certainly  here  was  offered  an  agreeable  contrast  to 
the  dull  monotony  of  theological  lore.  Though  the 
kindly  donor's  name  is  not  known,  he  may  reasonably  be 

^  Edward  Earl  of  Clarendon.    The  floor   of   the   City   Hall,    "had   pre- 

History  of  the  Rebellion  and  Civil  sented  .  .  .  the     Library    with     the 

Wars    in    England.    Oxford,    1703.  Lord   Clarendons   first  part  of  the 

This    was    not    the    only    copy    in  History  of  the  Civil  Warrs  of  the 

the   early   Library,   for  the  Trinity  Kingdome  of  England."     Vol.  I,  p. 

vestry  minutes  show  that  in  January,  63.     This  gift  had  quite  a  personal 

1709,  Lord  Cornbury,  then  removed  touch,   for  Lord  Cornbury— as  was 

from  the  governorship  and  confined  also  Queen  Anne— was  a  grandchild 

in  the  debtors'  prison,  on  the  top  of  the  author. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  21 

presumed  to  have  been  either  Dr.  Bray  or  the  Bishop  of 
London  again,  for  this  gilt  lettering  conforms  exactly 
with  that  on  the  books  brought  by  Lord  Bellomont  in 
1698  for  Boston,  as  the  nucleus  of  its  parochial  library.^ 
This  collection,  known  as  King's  Chapel  Library,  has 
long  been  deposited  in  the  Boston  Athengeum.  It 
comprises  some  110  volumes,  with  the  royal  stamp,  SVB 
AVSPICIIS  WILHELMI  III,  on  one  cover,  and  on  the 
other,  DE  BIBLIOTHECA  DE  BOSTON.  A  few  of  the 
books,  however,  are  labeled  like  the  old  Clarendon  his- 
tory, BELONGING  TO  Y^  LIBRARY  OF  BOSTON  IN 
NEW  ENGLAND,  though  no  date  is  affixed,  that  feature 
evidently  having  come  as  an  improvement  in  course  of 
time.    Moreover,  Dr.  Bray  had  expressly  directed: 

THAT  for  further  Security  to  preserve  them  from  Loss  and 
Imbezelment,  and  that  they  may  be  known  where-ever  they  are 
found;  in  every  Book,  on  the  one  side  of  the  Cover,  shall  he  Let- 
tered these  Words,  SUB  AUSPICIIS  WILLIELMI  III.  on  the 
other  side  the  Name  of  the  Parish  to  which  these  Books  do  he- 
long:  EX.  GR.  E.  BIBLIOTHECA  DE  MARY-TOWN:  E. 
BIBLIOTHECA  DE  JAMES-TOWN,  c^-c.^ 

^  Receipt  of  these  books  was  ac-  cedes    that    of    the    slightly    larger 

knowledged  in  a  letter  to  the  Lord  New  York  consignment  in  the  MS. 

Bishop    of   London    under   date   of  brochure,    Bihliothecw    Provinciales 

July  25,   1698,   as   appears    from   a  AmericancB  (see  p.  l^n),  bound  into 

copy  in  the  vestry  minutes  of  King's  a     nameless,     leather-covered     vol- 

Chapel,    Boston.      Its    records    also  ume  now  in  the  keeping  of  the  Bray 

contain   a   catalogue    of   the   books.  Associates.      Each    volume    of    the 

classified  much  like  those  for  New  old    collection    now    in    the    Boston 

York,   and   styled,   "A    Register   of  Athenaeum  also  bears  on  its  inside 

Books  Sent  with  his  Excellency  the  cover    this    stamp,    "Belonging    to 

Earl   of   Bellomont  towards   laying  King's  Chapel  Library,  Boston,"   A 

the  foundation  of  a  Library  for  the  rebound   folio  with  this   same  label 

use     of    the     Church    of     England  is    in    the   Library    of   the    General 

Clergy  in  Boston."    The  list  is  given  Theological    Seminary,    New    York, 

in  fidl,  to  the  number  of  211   vol-  It  is  "The  Book  of  Common  Prayer," 

umes,  by  the  Rev.  Henry  W.  Foote  in  published    in    London    in    1739,    so 

the  "Proceedings"  of  the  Mass.  Hist.  that  it  was  of  course  a  later  con- 

Soc.  for  May,  1881,  1st  series,  vol.  tribution. 

XVIII.     Boston,  1881.     Pages  426-  '"Proposals    for    the    Incourage- 

430.     The  original   "Register"  pre-  ment    and    Promoting    of    Religion 


22       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

We  may  therefore  easily  imagine  how  the  earlier 
volmnes  of  New  York's  first  Library  were  probably 
stamped.  But  of  that  little  collection  the  Clarendon 
book  alone  survives  to-day  in  its  solitary  isolation  in  the 
Society  Library.  How  and  when  it  came  there  can  only 
be  conjectured,  as  will  be  seen.^ 

It  is  thus  perfectly  patent  that  the  first  Library  in 
New  York  was  wholly  parochial  in  scope.  But  from  its 
being  intended  for  the  use  of  the  clergy  in  general,  it  as- 
sumed a  more  public  character.  And  that  it  was  even  so 
styled  is  evident  from  one  source  at  least.  For,  at  a 
Trinity  vestry  meeting,  June  13,  1707,  "the  Reverend 
M^  Vesey  informed  this  Board  Tho:  Byerly  Esq^  had 
presented  the  public  Library  with  Books  amounting  to 
Six  pounds  which  are  put  down  in  the  Catalogue  there- 
of,"^ as  related  above.^ 

Meanwhile,  in  1700,  Dr.  Bray  had  widened  his  Li- 
brary plan  to  include  among  its  beneficiaries  the  laity, 
for  whom  were  to  be  provided  "Lending  Laymen's 
Libraries."  He  had  previously  written,  that  "in  the 
Chief  Town  in  each  Province  it  would  be  requisite  to 
have  a  Library  of  more  Universal  Learning,  for  the 
Service  and  Encouragement  of  those  who  shall  launch 
out  farther  in  the  pursuit  of  Useful  Knowledge,  as  well 

and  Learning  in  the  Foreign  Planta-  WILHELMI  III,  and  DE  BIBLIO- 

tions."     P.   124,  Part   I,  of  Biblio-  THECA  DE  NEW  YORK.     Fur- 

theca     Parochialis.     London,     1697.  thermore,      the      title,      "Epiphanij 

Reprinted   in   "Rev.    Thomas    Bray.  Opera  2  Vol.  Colon.  1683,"— entered 

His  Life  and  Selected  Works  Relat-  under  the  heading,  "Fathers,"  in  the 

ing  to  Maryland."     Edited  by  Ber-  original  "Register"  of  1697,  as  in  its 

nard  C.  Steiner.    Pp.  204-205.    Vide  copy  in  the  Trinity  vestry  minutes, 

infra,  p.  27 nl.  —identifies  this  book,  the  second  vol- 

^  Since  this  matter  was  set  up  in  ume   of  the   work,   as   part   of  the 

type,  there  has  come  to  light  in  the  original    consignment   brought    over 

Library  of  the  General  Theological  by  Lord  Bellomont. 

Seminary  a  single  folio  volume,  its  ^  Trinity  vestry  minutes,  I,  58. 

respective  covers  stamped,  in  similar  ^  Swpra,  p.  20. 
gilt    characters,    SVB    AVSPICIIS 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  23 

Natural  as  Divine."^    Accordingly  he  now  arranged  to 
despatch  books  "to  be  Lent  or  Given  at  the  Discretion  of 
the  Minister,"  the  clergy  being  "the  Persons  whose 
Chief  Business  it  is  to  be  Men  of  Knowledge."^    In  one 
of  his  "Circular  Letters"  to  the  clergy  of  Maryland  in 
1701,  this  enthusiastic  man  speaks  of  the  Layman's  Li- 
brary as  "my  darling  Contrivance."    Among  recipients 
of  its  benefits  are  included  "y^  Chief  Governors,"  "y^ 
Best  Disposed  Magistrates,"  and  "y^  publick  Houses." 
To  expedite  this  measure  Dr.  Bray  proposed  the  ap- 
pointment of  a  special  agent  in  America,  with  the  fol- 
lowing towns  as  distributing  centers  or  "chief  stations": 
Boston;  New  York,  "from  whence  he  may  go  to  Long 
Island  &  East  Jersey";  Philadelphia;  "Annopolis  in 
Mary  Land" ;  and  Williamsburg,  Virginia.^    The  Rev. 
George  Keith,  a  clergjrman  of  renowned  fervor,  was 
chosen  to  conduct  the  new  enterprise.  Both  his  selection 
and  the  character  of  the  matter  to  be  distributed  show 
clearly  that  the  missionary  idea  was  even  more  pro- 
nounced than  before.    Mr.  Keith,  himself  a  rabid  con- 
vert from  Quakerism,  was  to  be  supplied  with  books  and 
tracts  of  an  exclusively  religious  tone,— without  a  gleam 
of  worldliness  to  lighten  their  pervading  solemnity, — 
under  the  following  heads:  the  Scriptures;  works  "for  y® 
Instruction  of  Catechimiens" ;  others  "for  y^  use  of  y^ 
Adults" ;  still  others  "to  promote  ....  a  Reformation  of 
Manners" ;  writings  "to  prepare  y®  Adults  for  y^  Worthy 
Receiving  of  both  y®  Sacram*^" ;  and,  lastly,  works  aimed 
"to  Recover  to  y®  Unity  of  the  Church  all  such  as  have 
Gone  astray  into  Heresy  and  Schism,"  such  wanderers 
being  classified  as  Quakers,  Dissenters  and  Papists. 

^  Apostolick  Charity,  p.  (y).  Americans    Quadripartitce.      See   p. 

^  From  the  preface  to  Bibliotheccp       13n. 

'Ibid. 


M       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

George  Keith  set  sail  in  April,  1702,  and  remained  in 
the  colonies  for  a  little  over  two  years,  as  the  first  mis- 
sionary sent  by  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts  on  a  tour  of  personal  investiga- 
tion. Concerning  the  condition  of  the  Anglican  church 
in  New  York,  he  thus  expresses  himself  upon  arrival : 

The  Church  of  England  under  the  late  Administration  of  the 
Lord  Bellamont  and  Captain  Nanfan  hath  been  grievously 
opposed  and  oppressed;  but  since  the  auspicious  arrival  of 
the  Right  Honorable  the  Lord  Cornbury,  has  been  delivered 
from  the  violence  of  her  enemies,  restored  to  her  rights,  greatly 
countenanced  and  encouraged,  and  Hves  under  the  just  expecta- 
tion of  being  more  firmly  established  and  enlarged.^ 

Lists  of  books  and  tracts  sent  over  to  America  for  this 
work  among  laymen  are  preserved  to-day  with  the  Bray 
papers  in  the  Library  of  Sion  College,  London.  One  of 
them  is  styled  "An  Acct  of  the  Books  Set  up  in  y^  Book- 
press  Sent  to  N.  York."  It  is  not  dated,  but  that  the 
books  were  received  appears  in  a  letter  from  Mr.  Keith 
to  Dr.  Bray,  dated  at  Philadelphia,  February  24,  1704, 
as  follows:  "The  six  boxes  you  sent  are  all  come  safe; 
that  to  Boston,  that  to  New  York,  that  to  the  two  Jer- 
seys, and  that  to  Pennsylvania,  are  all  disposed  of  al- 
ready, according  to  your  orders,  and  are  very  acceptable 
to  the  people."^  The  majority  of  the  books  were  not 
only  deeply  religious  in  character  but  excessively  contro- 

^  Collections     of     the     Protestant  Rev.  John  Sharpe's  diary:  "A  Cata- 

Episcopal  Historical  Society.     New  logue  of  Books  given  by  the  Society 

York,  1851.    Page  xix.  for  propagation  of  the  Gospel  to  His 

^  Ibid.,  p.   xxiv.     Also   quoted  by  Ejccy   Coll    Hunter    which  are  now 

the    Rev.    Joseph    Hooper    in    his  given  to  be  distributed."    It  includes 

pamphlet  "George  Keith,"  in  Soldier  15  titles  of  tracts,  numbering  in  all 

^  Servant  Series,  Hartford,  1894.   P.  530  volumes.   (Governor  Hunter  ar- 

15.     That  this  work  was  maintained  is  rived  at  New  York  in  June,  1710.) 
clear    from   a  memorandum   in   the 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  25 

versial  as  well,  comprising  many  copies  of  the  Rev. 
Charles  Leslie's  "Y®  Snake  in  y^  Grass"— that  reptile 
being  miderstood  to  mean  Quakerism— and  of  Bugg's 
"Pilgrim's  Progress  from  Quakerism  to  Christianity." 

-  SVB 
iWSPirilS 

DE 
BIBLIOTHECA 

NEW  YORK 

Gilt  letters  (facsimile  size)  stamped  on  covers  of  surviving  volume  of  first 
consignment  of  Bray  books  to  New  York,  1697.    See  pp.  21,  iinl. 

Evidently  Mr.  Keith  had  been  directed  also  to  look 
into  the  condition  of  the  several  Parochial  Libraries,  for 
in  a  long  letter  to  Dr.  Bray  from  Philadelphia  in  the 
spring  of  1703  he  writes,  in  part:  "I  view'd  the  Library 
att  Boston,  as  ye  ordered  me,  and  find  it  in  good  Condi- 
tion.   But  at  N.  York  I  could  not  have  the  Catalogue. 


26       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

M^  Vesey  the  Minister  told  me  the  Chaplain  of  the  fort 
had  carried  it  away  w*^  him  to  England."  There  is 
nothing  in  the  records  to  indicate  who  this  offending 
person  was.  The  Rev.  Edmond  Mott  held  the  chap- 
laincy for  the  two  years  preceding  his  death  in  1704.^ 
According  to  the  rather  confusing  table  of  chaplains  in 
the  appendix  to  the  recently  published  history  of  Trinity 
parish,^  his  immediate  predecessor  was  the  Rev.  John 
Peter  Brisac,  who  in  1701  succeeded  the  Rev.  Simon 
Smith,  incumbent  from  1696  to  1700.  This  last-named 
individual,  it  will  be  recalled,  was  for  a  time  the  unofficial 
custodian  of  the  first  books  given  by  Governor  Fletcher 
in  1698.  He  is  mentioned  in  the  vestry  minutes  of 
September  23,  1700,  as  "suspended,''^  so  he  may  as  well 
bear  the  further  odium  of  having  absconded  with  the 
Library  catalogue. 

It  must  long  since  have  become  apparent  that  Dr. 
Bray  was  a  man  of  unusual  creative  power.  He  should 
be  accounted  one  of  the  ablest  organizers  in  the  colonial 
period  of  American  history,  for  his  efforts  led  to  the 
establishment  of  the  celebrated  "Venerable"  Society  for 
the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  char- 
tered June  20, 1701,  and  of  the  still  older  Society  for  the 
Promotion  of  Christian  Knowledge— both  institutions 
wielding  great  influence.  To  the  former  New  York  is 
especially  indebted  for  its  instrumentality  in  establish- 

^  Possibly    this     person's     private  York.     1898.     Vol.  I,  appendix  ix, 

library  was  joined  with  the  parish  p.  485. 

collection,    for    Governor    Cornbury  ^Trinity    vestry    minutes,    I,    35. 

wrote  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  Oct.  Also,  Lord  Bellomont  wrote  to  the 

3,  1706,  that  Mr.  Mott,  "late  Chap-  Lords   of  Trade,  Oct.  17,   1700:   *'I 

lain  to  Her  Majty's  forces  here,  .  .  .  suspended    Parson   Smith,   Chaplain 

has  left  some  books  of  which  I  here-  to   these   Companys,   on  the   7th   of 

with  send  a  Catalogue."     N.  Y.  Col.  last  August  for  affronting  my  Lord 

Does.,  vol.  IV,  p.  1182.  Bishop  of  London  and  for  living  a 

*  Morgan  Dix.     A  History  of  the  scandalous  life."     Co?.  Doc*.,  IV,  719. 
Parish     of     Trinity     Church.     New 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  27 

ing,  among  similar  institutions  in  America,  the  first 
Public  Circulating  Library  (the  Corporation  Library) 
and  the  first  College  Library  (the  Library  of  King's 
College)  in  the  metropolis,  the  history  of  both  of  which 
will  presently  be  reviewed.  The  study  of  Dr.  Bray's  life 
and  work  is  profitable,  so  interesting  and  useful  was 
his  career,  and  so  abiding  have  been  many  fruits  of  his 
labors  and  sacrifices.^ 

In  1746  there  was  published  an  appreciative  volume 
entitled  "Publick  Spirit  Illustrated  in  the  Life  and  De- 
signs of  the  Reverend  Thomas  Bray,  D.D."  An  appen- 
dix to  its  second  edition  (1808)  gives  this  simimary  of  his 
chief  work:  "By  the  exactest  account  that  has  been  pro- 
cured, upwards  of  Fifty  Libraries,  it  appears,  were 
founded  by  Dr.  Bray  in  America  and  other  countries 
abroad,  and  Sixty-One  Parochial  Libraries  in  England 
and  Wales."  A  schedule  is  added,  according  to  which 
four  collections  had  been  sent  "into  the  Government  of 
N^ew  York,"  namely:  to  the  city  of  New  York,  211 ;  "to 
Amboy  in  New  Jersey,"  30;  to  Albany,  10;^  and  "to 

^  For  sources,  see  Dr.  Bernard  C.  Bodleian  Library,  Oxford,  was  made 

Steiner's  article,  "Rev.  Thomas  Bray  the   basis    of   Publick   Spirit    Illus- 

and  his  American  Libraries,"  in  The  trated  in  the  Life  and  Designs  of 

American  Historical  Review.     New  the    Reverend    Thomas    Bray,   D.D. 

York,  1897.     Vol.  II,  p.  59  et  seq.;  London,    1746.      A    copy    is    in    the 

^'Parochial  Libraries  in  the  Colonial  General  Seminary  Library.    A  copy 

Period,"  by  Bishop  John  F.  Hurst,  of  the  second  edition    (1808)    is  in 

D.D.,    in   Papers    of    the    American  the  New  York  Public  Library. 
Society    of    Church   History.      New  -  In  the  year  1900,  one  of  these  ten 

York,  1890.    Vol.  II,  pp.  37-50;  and,  books,   sent   early  in   the   18th  cen- 

especially,  "Rev.  Thomas  Bray.    His  tury  to  "The  Church  of  Albany  in 

Life  and   Selected  Works   Relating  New  York"  by  Dr.  Bray's  Associates, 

to    Maryland."      Edited    by    B.    C.  was    "again   in   the   custody   of  the 

Steiner.      Maryland    Historical    So-  parish"  of  Old  St.  Peter's.     It  was 

ciety     Fund    Publication,    No.     37.  a   copy   of   Dr.    Bray's    own    work, 

Baltimore,  1901.     This  collection  of  Catechetical  Lectures.    London,  1701. 

reprints  contains  also  "A  Short  His-  See    A    History    of    Saint    Peter's 

torical  Account  of  the  Life  and  De-  Church  in  the  City  of  Albany.    By  the 

signs   of   Thomas    Bray,   D.D.,   late  Rev.  Joseph  Hooper,  A.M.     Albany, 

Vicar  of  St  Botolph's  without  Aid-  1900.     P.   34?t.      But   in   November, 

gate,"   by   iiie    Rev.    Richard   Raw-  1907,  diligent  search   failed  to  find 

linson.     This  sketch,  a  MS.  in  the  the  book. 


28       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

Boston  in  New  England,"  221;  the  figures  represent- 
ing the  number  of  books  despatched  to  each  place. 

Nevertheless,  beyond  the  few  and  insignificant  acces- 
sions already  enumerated,  the  New  York  collection 
remained  practically  dormant.  Fully  a  quarter  of  a  cen- 
tury after  its  foundation.  Rector  Vesey,  in  response  to  a 
printed  request  from  the  Bishop  of  London,  thus  briefly 
exposes  its  undeveloped  state:  "I  have  under  my  care  in 
my  Study  a  small  parochial  library,  and  though  I  never 
received  any  particular  rules  and  orders  concerning  it, 
I  assure  your  Lordship  all  the  books  are  preserved  and 
kept  in  good  condition."^  The  good  rector  was  evidently 
quite  unmindful  of  the  "Directions"  that  accom- 
panied the  consignment  in  the  first  instance.  Very  prop- 
erly the  church  continued  to  be  the  repository,  and  its 
pastor  the  custodian,  of  the  little  collection.  Of  its  care- 
ful preservation  indeed,  the  Rev.  Robert  Jenney,  chap- 
lain at  the  fort  and  assistant  minister  at  Trinity,  writes 
suggestively  to  the  Bishop  of  London  in  November, 
1720,  when  asking  aid  to  establish  the  Sharpe  collection 
as  a  Public  Library:  "...  provided  it  be  really  a  pub- 
lick  library  &  be  not  lockt  up  in  y?  particular  Study  of 
any  particular  person." 

It  thus  appears  that  some  thought  at  least  was  paid  to 
the  colonial  Library,  although  but  slender  additions  had 
gained  their  way  to  its  shelves.  The  energetic  founder 
himself  would  seem  to  have  had  no  system  of  enlarging 
the  several  collections  he  had  brought  into  being,  until 

^His    reply    to    the    last    of    IT  orders    duly    observed?"     The   orlg- 

Queries    to    be    answered    by    every  inal   of   this   paper   cannot   now   be 

Minister,  viz:  "Have  you  a  Parochial  found  among  the  MSS.  in  Fulham 

Library?     If     you     have,     are    the  Palace,  London.     A  copy  is  pasted 

Books  preserved,  and  kept  in  good  in  Gen.  Conv.  Arch.,  N.  Y.  MSS.,  I, 

condition?    Have  you  any  particular  640,    undated,    but    similar    papers 

rules  and  orders  for  the  preserving  from  other  parishes  in  the  province 

of    them?      Are    those    rules     and  are  dated  1723  or  1724. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  29 

his  formation  of  the  Bray  Associates,  the  income  from 
whose  charity  fund  has,  since  his  decease  in  1730,  estab- 
Mshed  and  perpetuated  hundreds  of  Theological  Li- 
braries in  Great  Britain  and  in  her  dominions  beyond  the 
seas.  But  the  New  York  Library,  with  others  in  what  is 
now  the  United  States,  received  no  further  support 
from  home. 

Nor  did  they,  on  the  other  hand,  meet  with  much  en- 
couragement from  the  colonists.  The  Library  idea  was 
too  advanced  for  them,  especially  in  New  York,  where 
confusion  of  tongues  still  prevailed,  and  where  the  An- 
glican element  was  too  unpopular  to  secure  aid  for  a 
purely  sectarian  institution.  And  the  predominant  char- 
acter of  the  Bray  collections  was  so  exclusively  devo- 
tional and  churchly  as  not  to  be  generally  acceptable.  It 
was  thus  never  possible  to  establish  or  confirm  this  early 
Library  by  legislative  enactment,  as  its  pious  founder 
earnestly  desired,  and  as  was  done  in  other  provinces.^ 

Furthermore,  the  Knickerbockers  were  too  deeply  en- 
grossed in  their  private  and  political  concerns  for  even 
the  well-to-do  to  be  men  of  leisure.  All  alike  were  en- 
gaged in  business,  while  for  recreation  they  not  unnatu- 
rally preferred  out-of-door  pastimes  to  excursions  in 
theology.  When  Governor  Bellomont  first  set  foot  on 
the  island  of  Manhattan,  echoes  of  the  distracting  Leisler 
excitement,  the  reflection  in  New  York  of  the  Glorious 
Revolution  of  1688,  had  by  no  means  died  away  in  the 
little  city,  whose  settled  portion  lay  wholly  below  Wall 
street,  and  whose  inhabitants  numbered  less  than  five 
thousand  souls. 

From  the  following  lines  in  an  old  history  one  gains 

^See  Colonial  Laws  of  Maryland,       1704,  1706,  1712;  of  North  Carolina, 
1699,  1727;  of  South  CaroUna,  1700,       1715. 


30       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

an  interesting  picture  of  the  cultural  conditions  of  those 
times, —  discrediting  the  while  its  concluding  assertion, 
especially  in  view  of  the  facts  to  be  brought  out  in  the 
present  work.  Listen,  then,  to  the  learned  Britisher, 
James  Grahame,  how  he  writes : 

A  printing-press  was  established  at  New  York,  in  the  year 
1693,  by  a  printer  flying  from  the  strange  occurrence  of 
Quaker  tyranny  and  persecution  in  Pennsylvania ;  and  a  library 
was  founded  under  the  government  of  Lord  Bellamont  in  the 
year  1700.  But  the  schools  in  this  province  were  inconsid- 
erable; and  although  the  wealthier  families  obtained  valuable 
instructors  for  their  children  among  the  numerous  Protestant 
refugees  from  France,  the  great  bulk  of  the  people  were 
strangers  even  to  the  first  rudiments  of  science  and  cultivation, 
till  the  era  of  the  American  Revolution.^ 

On  this  allusion  to  a  Library  has  been  based  the  hith- 
erto uncontroverted  claim  that  "The  history  of  the  New 
York  Society  Library  commences  in  the  year  1700,"  at 
which  "time  *The  Public  Library'  of  New  York  was 
founded  during  the  administration  of  the  Earl  of  Bella- 
mont."^ Not  a  little  of  the  glamour  attaching  to  this 
long-vaunted,  cherished  belief  is  therefore  dispelled  in  a 
realization  that  the  collection  was  originally  but  a  paltry 
"parcell"  of  sober  tomes  for  a  Parish  Library.  Know- 
ledge of  the  fact,  however,  will  in  turn  soothe  any  sting 
of  disappointment  at  learning  that  this  early  Library 
never  had  the  slightest  connection  with  the  Society  Li- 
brary, founded  confessedly  in  1754.  The  two  institu- 
tions maintained  independent  existences  for  twenty-two 
years,  side  by  side  in  the  little  capital,  the  one  in  Trinity 

^  James  Grahame.    The  History  of  History,     Charter,     By-Laws,     ^c. 

the   United  States.     (London,  1827,  1881.     P.  5;  also,  Catalogue  of  the 

1836.)       Boston    and    Philadelphia,  New    York   Society   Library.     1850. 

1845.    Vol.  II,  p.  256.  P.  vii.    See  also  p.  6,  supra. 

'  The  New  York  Society  Library. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  31 

Church  and  the  other  in  the  City  Hall/  until  the  mori- 
bund career  of  the  former  and  the  first  epoch  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  latter  came  to  a  simultaneous  end  under  the 
ravages  of  the  Revolution. 

An  even  earlier  mention  of  the  older  Library  is  found 
in  another  historical  work,  published  almost  contem- 
poraneously with  the  event  chronicled,  and  bearing  the 
ambitious  title,  "The  British  Empire  in  America,  Con- 
taining the  History  of  the  Discovery,  Settlement,  Prog- 
ress and  present  State  of  all  the  British  Colonies,  on  the 
Continent  and  Islands  of  America."^  In  the  chapter  on 
New  York  it  is  stated  as  proof  of  advancement  that  "A 
Library  was  erected,  this  Year  [1700],  in  the  City  of 
New- York:  And  the  Dutch  Inhabitants  built  Mills  to 
saw  Timber;  one  of  which  wou'd  do  more  in  an  Hour, 
than  50  Men  in  2  Days."^ 

The  very  arrangement  of  these  informing  particulars 
points  with  unconscious  emphasis  to  the  relative  insig- 
nificance of  a  Library  in  comparison  with  the  general 
interests  of  the  community  at  that  time.  There  is  no  evi- 
dence at  hand  to  show  that  the  Dutch  ever  had  so  much 
as  thought  of  a  Church  Library  in  New  York;^  while 
the  only  reference  to  books  that  can  be  found  in  their 
pubhc  acts  appears  in  an  ordinance  of  1662  by  the  di- 
rector-general and  council  of  New  Netherland  against 


^  The  City  Hall  then  stood  in  Wall  scholars   of  well-nigh   as  many   na- 

street    opposite    Broad,    scarcely    a  tionalities,     English,    French,    Ger- 

stone's  throw  from  Trinity  Church,  man,  Latin,  Itsdian  and  Spanish,  as 

on  Broadway  facing  Wall  street.  well  as  Dutch.    The  little  collection 

^  John  Oldmixon.    London,  1708.  was  despatched  from  Holland  in  the 

^  Vol.  I,  p.  128.  same  vessel  that  bore  the  Rev.  Jo- 

*  In   the   "Rensselaerswyck   MSS."  hannes  Megapolensis  to  his  new  field 

there   is   recorded   a  "Catalogue  of  in   the   colony   of   Rensselaerswyck. 

Books   which   are  sent    for  the   Li-  For   a  list  of  the  books  with   "re- 

brary  in  Rensselaerswyck,  to  be  for-  marks,"  see  E.  B.  O'Callaghan.   His- 

warded  there."     This  list  comprises  tory  of  New  Netherland.     New  York, 

17    titles    of    theological    works    by  1846.    Vol.  I,  pp.  454-455. 


S2       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

conventicles,  whereby  "diuerse  persons"  were  prohibited 
from  importing  or  dispersing  "seditious  &  erroneous 
boecks,  writings  &  letters."^  Yet  by  1664  there  were 
schools  in  nearly  all  the  towns  and  villages  of  New  Neth- 
erland,  with  a  Latin  or  high  school  of  wide  repute  at 
New  Amsterdam.  And  certainly  the  ministers,  as  also 
other  leading  citizens,  were  the  possessors  of  private 
collections.  Even  as  elegant  a  personage  as  Governor 
Francis  Lovelace  is  said  to  have  written  to  King  Charles 
in  1668:  "I  find  some  of  these  people  have  the  breeding 
of  courts,  and  I  cannot  conceive  how  such  is  acquired."^ 
Nevertheless,  as  one  careful  student  of  that  period  has 
observed,  "the  spirit  of  trade,  and  those  depressing  in- 
fluences common  to  all  colonies  and  young  countries, 
checked  if  not  stifled  literary  enterprise."^ 

It  is  even  less  probable  that  other  religious  bodies  in 
the  city  had  Libraries.  The  Presbyterians,  in  point  of 
influence  the  third  denomination,  met  with  too  much  op- 
position and  discouragement  simply  in  maintaining  an 
establishment  in  New  York  to  think  of  conducting  a 
Library.  It  is  therefore  not  surprising  to  find  in  their 
records  no  suggestion  of  such  an  institution.  One  sig- 
nificant entry,  however,  betokens  their  proper  apprecia- 
tion of  the  value  of  books.  The  trustees  of  the  church 
on  June  1, 1756,  took  the  following  action: 

Resolved  That  the  Rev^  M^  Bostwick  may  become  a  subscriber 
to  the  New  York  Society  Library.    That  the  Clerk  draw  an  Or- 

^  Laws    and    Ordinances    of   New  349.     It  must  be  said,  however,  that 

Netherland,   1638-1674.     Edited   by  no  source  is  given  for  this  quota- 

E.   B.   O'Callaghan.     Albany,   1868.  tion,  which  does  not  appear  in  the 

P.  428.  governor's    correspondence    printed 

''The   Rev.   Ashbel   G.    Vermilye,  in  the  N.   F.   Ool.  Docs,  or  in  the 

D.D.     "Francis     Lovelace    and    the  Doc.  Hist,  of  N.  Y. 

Recapture     of     New     Netherland,  *  E.   B.   O'Callaghan.     History  of 

1668-1674."     The  Memorial  History  New  Netherland.     New  York,  1848. 

of  New-York.     Vol.  I,  chap,  ix,  p.  Vol.  II,  p.  547. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  33 

der  in  his  Favour  on  the  Treasurer  for  such  sum  as  the  Sub- 
scription money  may  amount  to  And  it  is  to  be  understood  that 
this  Interest  in  the  Library  is  given  to  M^  Bostwick  as  Minister 
of  this  Church,  &  that  at  his  Decease  his  Heir  Executor  or  Ad- 
ministrator or  Legatee  or  himself  in  Case  he  shall  cease  to  be  our 
Minister  in  his  Life  time  will  assign  his  Interest  in  the  said 
Library  to  such  Person  as  the  Majority  of  the  Trustees  shall 
direct  and  that  he  will  in  the  mean  Time  pay  the  annual  Sub- 
scription money  due  by  the  Articles.^ 

The  subsequent  history  of  the  old  Trinity  Parish  Li- 
brary—as  it  should  properly  be  called— is  also  of  inter- 
est, culminating  in  truly  dramatic  fashion.  All  its  later 
acquisitions,  so  far  as  the  vestry  proceedings  reveal,  seem 
to  have  been  presented  by  the  same  individual,  "the  pious 
M^  EUiston,"  a  personage  of  no  little  consequence,  to 
judge  by  the  deferential  manner  in  which  his  name  and 
station,  as  well  as  votes  of  appreciation,  are  entered  in 
the  ancient  minutes.  Beginning  in  1715  these  donations, 
together  with  sundry  offerings  of  choice  plate,  were  con- 
tinued intermittently  for  many  years,  the  last  "Addi- 
tionall  Number  of  Books  to  the  Parochial  Library" 
being  recorded  in  July,  1741. 

All  told,  these  benefactions  number  some  116  volumes, 
covering  six  pages  of  the  "Catalogue"  in  the  big  manu- 
script folio,^  and  thus  introduced:  "Robert  EUiston 
Gent.  ComptroK  of  his  Majesty's  Customs  in  New  York 
in  America.  His  Gift  of  the  Books  by  the  Reverend 
Authors  in  the  Catalogue  ifoUowing;  To  Holy  Trinity 
Church  in  New  York  City  Its  Library."  The  titles  are 
tabulated  under  these  headings:  "The  Reverend  Authors 
Named,"  "Their  Respective  Tracts  Distinguished,"  and 

^  The  Rev.  David  Bostwick  died  in       was   transferred   in   1766   to   Henry- 
November,  1763;  his  share,  accord-       Remsen,  Jr.,  who  paid  the  arrears, 
ing  to  the  Society  Library  records,  ^  Trinity   vestry   minutes,   I,   210- 

213:  218-220. 


me-nccL  ■ 


'//iMA/aJo 


M 


U 


y^  o/t Ararat 


iUJU 


^i^ J/a./i/^^&^aM^'   *4^^^!^^^^I^^^^^Lr^zr-|^ 


gd-d. 


c. 


•.Affrdcutj^ 


Jjcwts^ 


Full  page  (much  reduced)  from  catalogue  in  Trinity  Vestry  minutes.    See  pp.  20,  88-35. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  35 

"The  Number  of  Volums  Lettered."  An  artistic  finish 
is  intended  in  a  valedictory,  handsomely  written  in 
Latin,  expressive  of  the  donor's  hope  that  the  gift  may 
prove  useful ;  but  the  passage  is  so  incomplete,  not  to  say 
inaccurate,  that  it  will  not  bear  close  scrutiny  from  in- 
telligent readers.  The  whole  is  dated,  churchly  fashion, 
at  the  Feast  of  the  Epiphany,  January,  1743. 

No  further  allusion  to  this  Library,  either  in  the 
church  records  or  anywhere  else,  has  come  to  light  in  the 
present  investigation,  prior  to  the  sad  chronicling  of  its 
virtually  complete  destruction  in  the  great  fire  of  Sep- 
tember 21,  1776,  when  the  charity  schools  and  the  rec- 
tory, as  well  as  the  sacred  edifice  itself,  fell  prey  to  the 
destroyer.  The  least  item  in  the  damage,  the  loss  of  the 
Library,  was  yet  estimated  as  £200,^  a  very  considerable 
sum  for  those  days,  even  though  a  pound  represented 
but  about  $2.50  in  New  York  currency.  It  would  seem 
that  the  collection  must  have  received  additions  other 
than  the  catalogue  in  the  minutes  records,  for  not  over 
425  volumes  are  there  enumerated,  and  not  all  of  these 
were  lost. 

A  graphic  account  of  this  fire  is  given  by  Rector  Ing- 
lis,  who  labored  heroically  to  save  the  church  property 
from  destruction.^  In  some  way  a  few  of  the  books 
escaped  annihilation.  Besides  the  old  Clarendon  history 
in  the  Society  Library,  already  mentioned,  about  twenty 
EUiston  volumes  are  in  existence  to-day  in  the  Library 
of  the  General  Theological  Seminary.  Most  of  them 
are  still  adorned  with  his  beautiful  bookplate  and  the 
printed  label,  "His  Gift  to  H.  Trinity-Church  Library 

*  Vestry  minutes,  I,  398.  ords  and  in  Gen.  Conv.  Arch.,  N.  Y. 

^  The   Rev.    Charles    Inglis,   D.D.,  MSS;  it  is  printed  in  Tyoc.  Hist,  of 

to  the  Rev.  Richard  Hind,  D.D.,  N.  7.  Vol.  Ill  (1850),  pp.  637-646. 
Oct.  31,  1776.    Copy  in  S.  P.  G.  rec- 


36       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

in  New- York  City."  In  company  with  them  is  yet  an- 
other interesting  little  book,^  its  fly-leaf  bearing  this 
significant  inscription,  ''John  Sharp  May  6*^  1714,"— of 
which  more  anon. 

There  is  real  romance  in  the  story  of  what  next  befell 
this  fire-spared  remnant.  In  the  words  of  Nathaniel  F. 
Moore,  president  of  Columbia  College,  when  referring 
to  the  transfer  of  the  Library  and  other  effects  of 
King's  College  to  the  City  Hall  in  May,  1776: 

Almost  all  the  apparatus,  and  a  large  proportion  of  the  books 
belonging  to  the  College,  were  wholly  lost  to  it  in  consequence 
of  this  removal ;  and  of  the  books  recovered,  six  or  seven  hundred 
volumes  were  so,  only  after  about  thirty  years,  when  they  were 
found,  with  as  many  belonging  to  the  N.  Y.  Society  Library, 
and  some  belonging  to  Trinity  Church,  in  a  room  in  St.  Paul's 
Chapel,  where,  it  seemed,  no  one  but  the  Sexton  had  been  aware 
of  their  existence,  and  neither  he  nor  any  body  else  could  tell 
how  they  had  arrived  there.^ 

In  consequence  of  this  statement,  the  belief  very  nat- 
urally came  to  prevail  that  the  books  were  in  some  way 
wholly  hidden  from  the  view  and  from  the  actual  know- 
ledge of  all  the  church  officers.  In  fact  it  has  been 
solemnly  assumed  that  the  doorway  to  their  place  of  re- 
pository was  carefully  walled  up  for  their  preservation  P 
But  from  press  comments  at  the  time  the  miscellaneous 
assortment  was  "discovered,"  it  appears  that  even  then 
the  story— though  not  the  collection— was  pronounced 

^  Warnings  of  the  Eternal  Spirit,  B.    Beach,    rector    of    St.     Peter's 

.  .  .  London,    1712.     Another   work,  Church. 

The  Lawfulness  and  Expediency  of  ^  N.     F.     Moore.     An    Historical 

Set   Forms    of   Prayer,   Maintained  Sketch  of  Columbia  College.     New 

(Robert  Calder.    N.  p.,  1706),  bear-  York,  1846.    P.  62. 

ing  the  same   autograph   and   date,  ^  Morgan  Dix,   S.T.D.     Historical 

was   presented  to   the   Seminary   in  Recollections    of   S.    Paul's    Chapel. 

1890,  by  the  late  Rev.   Dr.   Alfred  New  York,  1867.    P.  43. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  37 

an  invention,  "a  hocuv''!^  Upon  investigation,  the  editor 
of  the  Morning  Chronicle  on  December  14,  1802,  gave 
the  following  explanation  of  current  lively  rumors : 

There  are  in  a  room  in  the  east  corner  of  St.  Paul's  church, 
about  two  thousand  volumes  consisting  chiefly  of  latin  and  Eng- 
hsh  authors.  They  are  the  remains  of  a  Hbrary  presented  by 
different  persons  to  Trinity  church,  many  years  since,  which 
were  saved  from  the  flames  when  that  edifice  was  consumed,  and 
were  lodged  in  the  hands  of  bishop  Inglis.  On  his  removal  to 
Nova-Scotia  (at  the  evacuation  of  this  city  by  the  British 
forces)  they  were  conveyed  from  his  house  to  St.  Paul's  church, 
where  they  have  ever  since  remained.  They  were  not  forgotten, 
as  reported,  but  have  been  visited  frequently  by  bishop  Provoost 
and  others. 

It  would  seem  that  "others"  did  indeed  know  of  their 
existence  prior  to  this  date,  for  exactly  a  year  previously 
Mr.  John  Pintard,  one  of  the  most  public-spirited  men 
of  his  day,  had  written  in  his  diary  :^  "Conversed  with 
Bishop  Moore  on  forming  a  Theological  Library  imder 
the  auspices  of  Trinity  Church."  Enough  of  a  stir,  how- 
ever, was  occasioned  by  the  newspaper  disclosures  for 
the  college  authorities  to  claim  the  neglected  remnant 
of  the  King's  College  Library.^  And  friends  of  the  So- 
ciety Library  no  doubt  as  promptly  recovered  such  of  its 
property  as  could  be  identified,  though  the  minutes  of  its 
Trustees  do  not  mention  the  circumstance  at  all,  in  their 
brief  chronicles  of  the  few  meetings  held  at  that  period. 

Nearly  twelve  years  passed  before  any  further  atten- 
tion was  paid  to  the  old  volumes  still  left  in  St.  Paul's. 

^  The  Morning  Chronicle,  N.  Y.,  in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  E.  B.  Ser- 
Dec.  13,  1802.  voss,  N.  Y.  city. 

^  These  valuable  MS.  records  are  ^  At    least    one    volume,    however, 

widely  scattered.  The  sections  re-  was  left  behind  and  is  now  in  the 
f erred  to  in  the  present  volume  are       Library  of  the  General  Theological 

Seminary.    See  p.  99n2. 


^8       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 


HIS  GIFT  TO  H.TRINITY.CHUJICHLIBIIARV 

IN 

NEW-YORK  CITY. 


Robert  EUiston  bookplate  (facsimile  size),  printed  label  and 
private  inscription.    See  pp.  33,  34,  35-36. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  39 

Finally,  at  a  Trinity  vestry  meeting  on  March  14,  1814, 
a  letter  was  read  from  the  Rev.  Nathaniel  Bowen,  rector 
of  Grace  Church,  "and  others,  a  Committee  in  behalf  of 
the  New  York  Protestant  Episcopal  Library  Society, 
praying  a  Transfer  of  the  Books  composing  the  Library 
now  in  Saint  Paul's  Chapel."^  Without  delay  the  re- 
quest was  granted,  "on  condition  that  the  said  Society 
become  incorporated  according  to  Law."^ 

Although  in  a  twelve-page  pamphlet,  published  in 
1816  as  "Extracts  from  the  Minutes  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Library  Society  of  New- York,"  ^  the  Society 
is  expressly  declared  to  have  "since  become  incorpo- 
rated," no  such  record  appears,  either  in  the  archives  of 
the  state  or  legislative  departments  at  Albany,  or  upon 
the  registers  in  the  New  York  county  clerk's  office.  So 
fragmentary  are  any  allusions  that  can  be  found  to  this 
little  association,  a  forerunner  of  the  General  Theolog- 
ical Seminary,  that  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  devote  a  par- 
agraph or  two  to  its  consideration,  justification  for  their 
insertion  being  found  in  the  very  circumstances  of  its 
origin.    According  to  Mr.  Pintard's  journal  for  1814 : 

On  Wednesday  evening,  30*^  March,  several  Clergymen  &  Lay- 
members  of  the  protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  this  city  met  in 
the  Episcopal  Charity  School  room  to  take  into  consideration 
the  propriety  of  forming  an  Association  having  for  its  object 

^  Trinity  vestry  minutes,  II,  262.  calling   this    Society   "Literary"   in- 

^  In    chronicling    this    incident    in  stead  of  "Library,"  as  the  original 

the  lately  published,   elaborate  his-  minutes  of  the  vestry,  and  indeed  its 

tory  of  Trinity  parish,  the  statement  own   printed   by-laws,   show   clearly 

is  made  that  "The  Society  did  be-  was  its  actual  name, 

come  incorporated   and  is   now  the  ^  A  copy  is  in  the  Library  of  the 

*New  York  Society  Library'  on  Uni-  N,  Y.  Hist.  Society.    A  slightly  de- 

versity   Place"— an   institution   then  fective  copy  is  in  the  Library  of  the 

of     fully     sixty     years'     standing!  General     Seminary,    bound     up     as 

(Vol.  II,  p.  196.)     Though  this  mis-  "No.  34a"  in  a  book  of  pamphlets, 

take    is    later    corrected    (Vol.    IV,  "283.747i,P19." 
p.  533),  a  small  error  still  lingers  in 


40       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

the  collection  of  a  Theological  Library  of  all  the  most  rare  & 
valuable  works  in  the  various  departments  of  sacred  literature 
and  science.  Bishop  Hobart  presided — about  25  Gentlemen 
met.  Rules  prepared  by  the  Rev^  Doctor  Bowen,  who  interests 
himself  in  this  laudable  pursuit,  were  reported  &  adopted,  being 
similar  &  taken  from  the  Rules  for  the  Government  of  the  N. 
York  Society  Library.  The  Admission  Fee  was  fixed  at  Ten 
Dollars  &  Five  Dollars  annual  dues.  The  meeting  adjourned 
till  Wedy  12  o'clock  13*^  April  for  election  of  Trustees. 

The  balloting  resulted  in  the  choice  of  Bishop  Hobart 
as  president  ex  officio,  the  trustees  elected  comprising 
the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Bowden,  professor  of  rhetoric  and 
belles-lettres  in  Columbia  College,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bowen, 
rector  of  Grace  Church,  the  Rev.  Dr.  William  Harris, 
rector  of  St.  Mark's  Church-in-the-Bowery  and  at  the 
same  time  president  of  Colimibia  College,  the  Rev. 
Thomas  Y.  How  and  the  Rev.  Benjamin  T.  Onder- 
donk,  assistant  ministers  of  Trinity  parish,  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Samuel  F.  Jarvis,  rector  of  St.  Michael's,  Wilham 
Johnson  and  William  Cutting,  Esquires,  lawyers  of 
standing,  and  John  Pintard,  the  prime  mover  of  it  all. 
His  diary  further  records  that  a  smaller  gathering  had 
been  held  on  March  24th  at  Dr.  Bowen's  house,  "to  pre- 
pare Rules  &  Regulations  for  establishing  a  Library  for 
the  benefit  of  the  Episcopal  Clergy  in  this  city  ...  a 
Subject  I  have  long  had  at  heart,  &  on  which  I  have 
often  conversed  with  Doctor  Bowen."  Alluding  to  the 
old  Parish  Library,  he  says : 

There  is  a  small  Library,  established  before  the  revolution,  be- 
longing to  Trinity  Church,  which  will  be  granted  by  the  Vestry 
as  the  Basis  of  this  institution.  This  Library  consisting  of 
donations  may  contain  about  500.  volumes  of  valuable  Theolog- 
ical works.    To  the  shame  of  Trinity  Church  [it]  has  never  been 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  TRINITY  PARISH  41 

augmented  but  possibly  been  dilapidated.     It  is  at  present  in  a 
Chamber  over  the  N.  East  door  of  St  Pauls  Church. 


Later  Elliston  bookplate  with  written  label  (facsimile  size).    See  pp.  35-36. 


42       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

This  historic  old  room^  was  long  ago  converted  into  a 
passageway  to  the  gallery,  but  its  dimensions  cannot 
have  been  much  changed,  should  any  one  wish  to  gaze 
upon  the  four  walls  which  for  so  many  years  guarded 
portions  of  New  York's  early  Libraries. 

The  Protestant  Episcopal  Library  Society  soon  ful- 
filled its  destiny,^  becoming  merged  into  the  far  better 
organized  Protestant  Episcopal  Theological  Society,^ 
which  in  its  turn  gave  rise  to  the  General  Theological 
Seminary.  That  numerous  additions  of  books  were  re- 
ceived in  the  meantime  is  plain  from  a  manuscript  cat- 
alogue now  in  the  General  Seminary,  and  from  a  letter 
of  John  Pintard's  to  Bishop  Hobart,  dated  March  14, 
1822,  in  which  he  says:  "The  Books  in  St.  Paul's,  it  is 
said,  am*  to  800  vs." ;  and  of  the  entire  collection,  includ- 
ing 1000  volumes  given  to  the  Library  during  the  early 
years  of  the  Seminary  in  New  Haven,  he  adds:  "Consid- 
ering the  short  period  of  the  existence  of  the  Sem^"  this 
number  is  far  from  contemptible,  especially  when  their 
character  &  ponderosity  are  considered."  * 

It  is  therefore  indeed  fitting  that  the  few  survivors 
of  this  old  Church  of  England  Parish  Library,  founded 
in  pious  zeal  for  the  use  of  the  clergy,  should  be  given 
a  final  asylum  in  the  Library  of  an  institution  devoted 
to  the  training  of  young  men  for  the  Episcopal  ministry. 

^That   it   had   a  sacredness   aside  in    the    General    Seminary,    show    a 

from   the   sentimental  interest  here  membership  of  53  persons  in  1817. 
ascribed  to  it,  is  plain  from  these  ^"Hobart  planned   and   organized 

words  of  Dr.  Dix:  "And  now  I  have  a  clerical  association  under  the  title 

to  mention  the  great  glory  of  that  of  'The  Protestant  Episcopal  Theo- 

ancient  'Library  Room.'     In  it  the  logical  Society.'     From  this  as  from 

General    Theological    Seminary   was  a  germ  sprang  our  noble  institution 

born;    or   there,    at   least,   the    first  of  learning.  The  General  Theological 

children  were  nurtured,  and  thence  Seminary."     Morgan   Dix.     History 

were  they  sent  forth."     P.  44,  His-  of  Trinity  Parish.     II,  236. 


torical    Recollections    of    S.    Paul's  *  Quoted  by  Morgan  Dix.    History 

I,  New  York. 
e  treasurer's  records,  preserved 


Chapel,  New  York.  of  Trinity  Parish.    Ill,  979. 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  43 

2,  The  Sharpe  Collection,  given  in  1713  to  found  a 
''Puhlich  Library''  at  New  York 

Turning  now  from  the  story  of  the  first  New  York  Li- 
brary,—which  never  was  a  Public  Library  at  all,— as 
from  a  tale  that  is  told,  and  retracing  our  steps  almost  to 
the  same  early  date,  we  hear  again  the  voice  of  one  cry- 
ing in  the  unlettered  wilderness.  The  name  of  this  per- 
sonage, next  summoned  from  the  shadowy  past,  bears  a 
closer  relationship  to  the  still  far  distant  Society  Library 
than  founder  or  patron  of  the  old  Parish  Library.  The 
Rev.  John  Sharpe,  D.D.,  is  the  individual;  and  his  con- 
nection with  New  York  begins  in  his  appointment  by 
Governor  Cornbury,  October  20,  1704,  as  "Chaplain  of 
her  Majesty's  Forces  in  the  Province  of  New  York."^ 
This  date  should  dispose  of  the  oft-recurring  anachron- 
ism that  Mr.  Sharpe  was  chaplain  to  Lord  Bellomont, 
for  the  latter  died  March  5,  1701,  more  than  three  years 
earlier,  and  in  fact  four  months  before  Mr.  Sharpe  left 
England.  Inasmuch  as  no  sketch  of  this  good  man  has 
ever  been  published,  and  as  his  career  has  a  direct  bear- 
ing on  our  narrative,  it  is  pertinent  to  give  here,  in 
outline  at  least,  the  known  facts  of  his  pilgrimage. 

The  record  of  his  early  years  is  simply  told  in  a  few 
sentences  as  preface  to  his  private  diary,  entitled  "A 
Journal  of  my  Life— Exteriour,"  in  which  it  is  written: 
"On  May  15*  1680  I  was  born  at  the  Church  of  Bourty 
in  the  Presbytery  of  the  Garrioch  in  the  Kingdom  of 
Scotland  My  ffather  M^  Alexander  Sharpe  Minister  of 

^The  Sharpe  diary,  however,  gives  in    the    office    of    the    Secretary    of 

the    date    of    actual    investiture    as  State,  Albany.     A  rough  draft  is  in 

Oct.  19.    His  commission  is  recorded  "N.    Y.    Col.    MSS.,"    XLVII,    54, 

in    full   in    "Commissions,"    III,   95,  State  Library. 


44       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

Said  parish  and  Anne  Douglass  his  wife  my  mother." 
He  was  evidently  a  precocious  and  studious  lad,  for  he 
was  graduated  Master  of  Arts  from  the  University  of 
Aberdeen  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  whereupon  he  began 
the  study  of  theology  privately  in  the  city  of  Edinburgh. 
Most  touching  is  the  glimpse  of  sentiment  and  filial  af- 
fection revealed  in  these  simple  words:  "At  20  I  left  my 
Fathers  house  May  18*^  1700  and  was  accompanied  by 
him  to  Aberdeen  where  I  received  his  blessing  at  parting 
on  that  spot  of  ground  where  his  Father  blest  him  when 
he  went  to  Ireland."  His  ordination  to  the  ministry  at 
the  hands  of  the  Bishop  of  London  occurred  in  March, 
1701.'  On  July  3d  he  "came  on  board  her  Ma*^^^  Ship 
Southampton  bound  for  Virg2:  and  arrived  there  Sept^ 
8,  1701,"  whence  he  presently  proceeded  to  Maryland. 

Thus  John  Sharpe  at  twenty-one  began  laboring  in 
the  American  mission  field  as  one  of  Dr.  Bray's  ap- 
pointees and  under  the  auspices  of  the  Society  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  just  incorporated.  So  he 
doubtless  became  fully  imbued  with  all  Dr.  Bray's  plans, 
especially  when  settled  where  Parochial  Libraries  were 
most  thickly  planted.  In  1702-1703  he  was  rector  of 
Broad  Neck  parish,  Anne  Arundel  county,  and  the  next 
year  at  Snow  Hill  parish,  Somerset  county,  both  in 
Maryland.  In  May,  1703,  with  other  clergymen  he 
signed  a  petition  "To  his  honour  the  President  and 
Council,"  asking  among  other  things  "That  Catalogues 
of  Parochial  Librarys  be  taken  &  sent  to  the  Council."^ 

^  These  statements  are  confirmed  inal  book  of  subscriptions  to  the 
by  the  records  of  the  London  See  at  Act  of  Uniformity,  etc.,  in  the  same 
Fulham  Palace  in  Liber  Subscrip-  diocese,  preserved  in  the  Rawlinson 
tion.,  1699-1709,  containing  also  the  MSS.  (B.  375),  in  the  Bodleian  Li- 
signature  of  Mr.  Sharpe  after  the  brary,  Oxford,  viz:  "John  Sharpe, 
customary  oaths  of  conformity,  etc.  Maryland,  April  26,  1701." 
His  name  also  appears  in  the  orig-  ^  "Proceedings     of     the     Council, 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  45 

The  diary ^  of  John  Sharpe,  now  in  the  possession  of 
the  Historical  Society  of  Pennsylvania,  states  that  its 
second  part  was  "begun  at  point  Love  in  Chesapeack 
bay  in  the  province  of  Mary  Land  March  1. 170i,"  when 
its  author  was  about  to  leave  that  section  of  the  colonies. 
A  partial  explanation  of  his  abrupt  move  comes  from  a 
wholly  outside  source  in  a  letter  from  a  Pennsylvania 
clergyman  to  the  secretary  of  the  S.  P.  G.,  dated  March 
20,  1704.^    He  says  in  part: 

...  &  because*  Dear  S^  I  have  Sufficiently  Experienced  your 
Goodness,  I  dare  open  my  whole  Concern  &  fear,  &  that  is 
this,  I  met  w*^  one  M^  Sharp  of  Maryland,  one  who  has  been 
sent  about  S  years  since,  he  told  me  that  D^  Bray  was  his 
Priend,  &  procured  a  Support  for  him  from  that  Honorable 
Body,  but  seems  it  was  his  111  fortune  to  QuarreU  w*^  D^ 
Bray,  since  w^!?  time  he  has  never  rec*?  one  Penny  but  the  first 
£50.  He  has  left  Maryland,  &  thinks  to  settle  in  this  Province 
or  else  in  Burlington  in  E.  Jersey.  It  is  a  Miserable  thing  if  we 
that  are  so  remote,  stand  Precarious  to  one  Member's  Displeas- 
ure. I  could  relate  to  you  the  most  Surprising  Storyes  that  I 
have  had  too  sure  reason  to  believe  concerning  D^  B.  of  his  De- 
portment towards  the  Principall  Benef^  our  Church  has  in  this 
Country,  CoU^  Nicholson  Gov^  of  Virginia.  You  have  undoubt- 
edly heard  Enough  already,  but  you  must  Expect  to  hear  a 
great  deal  More.  [In  a  postscript  he  adds:]  Since  this  was 
finished  I  hear  that  M^  Sharp  will  take  upon  him  the  Itinerant 
office  in  M^  Keith's  Room. 

1698-1731,"  Archives  of  Maryland.  Mag.   of  Hist.,  vol.  XXIII    (1899), 

Baltimore,  1905.    P.  160.  pp.  104-105;  and  also  in  a  pamphlet 

^A  contemporary  allusion  to  this  by  the   Rev.   Joseph   Hooper,   "The 

journal    appears    in    a    letter    from  Church  in  Connecticut,  1705-1807," 

Col.     Lewis     Morris     to     Secretary  privately  printed  for  the  Commission 

Chamberlayne  of  the  S.  P.  G.,  dated  on    Parochial    Archives    of    Conn., 

Peb.  20,  1711,  in  which  he  speaks  of  June,  1906. 

"Mr  Sharp's  narrative,  who  kept  a  *  The  Rev.  Henry  Nicols  of  Ches- 

Diary    while   in    N    York."      N.    Y.  ter,  Penna.,  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Stubs, 

Col.  Docs.,  V,  318.     Extracts   from  London.    8.  P.  O.  Letter  Book,  vol. 

the    journal    have    been    published  I  A  (copies), 
(though  with  errors)  in  The  Penna. 


46       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

By  May,  1704,  the  wanderer  had  arrived  in  New  Jer- 
sey, and  for  the  next  five  months  was  busy  helping  the 
Rev.  John  Talbot  in  the  evangelical  work  begun  by 
George  Keith.  A  good  idea  of  his  enthusiasm  and  suc- 
cess is  given  in  these  extracts  from  a  letter  from  Mr. 
Talbot  to  Mr.  Keith,  dated  at  New  York,  October  20th. 

M^  Sharp  was  very  zealous  to  bring  y®  Quakers  to  stand  a  Tryal, 
he  carried  one  of  y®  Bombs  ^  into  their  Meeting  and  read 
a  new  Challenge  w*^^  I  sent  them  to  answer  what  they  had 
printed.  .  .  .  M^  Sharp  and  I  have  gon  y^  rounds  several  times 
from  Burlington  to  Amboy  to  Hopewell  to  Eliz  :Town  to  Staten 
Island  in  our  Turns  with  good  Success,  God  be  blessed,  in  all 
places.  He  had  gather'd  a  Church  himself  at  Cheesquaks  where 
he  preacht  several  times,  Sf  Baptiz'd  about  40  $sons.^ 

Then,  alluding  to  the  chaplaincy,  which  had  been  first 
offered  to  himself,  Mr.  Talbot  concludes : 

Now  I  am  alone  for  my  Lord  Cornbury  has  p^ferr'd  him  to  be 
Chaplain  of  her  Mati?^  Fort  and  Forces  at  N.  York.  I  saw  his 
Comission  sign'd  this  day,  in  y®  Room  of  M^  Mott  who  dyed 
about  3.  months  agoe.  I  was  loth  to  part  with  my  good  Friend 
and  Companion  in  Travel,  but  considering  how  he  had  been 
disappointed  at  home  I  would  not  hinder  his  p^ferment  abroad, 
hoping  that  y^  good  providence  of  God  and  y®  venerable  Society 
will  supply  his  place. 

Thus  the  young  priest  entered  upon  the  last  and  long- 
est period  of  his  American  ministry.  His  stipend  as 
chaplain  included  board  and  lodging  and  £130  a  year, 
payable  weekly.^    He  was  also  directed  by  the  governor 

*  A    tract    by    the    Rev.    Francis  Sharpe  received  £30  from  the  S.  P. 

Bugg.  G.     See  Letter  Book,  vol.  II  (orig- 

2;Sf.    P.    G.   Letter   Book,   vol.    II  inals),  1704-1706,  no.  cxxix. 

(copies),  1704-1706,  no.  xxiii.     For  "  "Mr  Talbot  to  ye  Society,"  Lon- 

his    services    in    New    Jersey,    Mr.  don,  March  14,  1705.    S.  P.  O.  Letter 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  47 

to  assist  Mr.  Vesey,  who  writes  to  the  secretary  of  the 
S.  P.  G.,  February  26,  1705:  "...  nor  do  I  now  want 
an  Assistant,  for  M^  Sharp  who  since  [he]  had  his 
Comission  to  be  Chaplain  of  the  Forces,  is  order'd  by  my 
L^  Cornbury  to  assist  me  &  to  preach  every  Sunday."^ 

Even  a  cursory  glance  through  his  little  old  "Journal" 
impresses  one  with  the  sense  of  John  Sharpe's  having 
been  an  earnest,  conscientious  soul,  tender  and  kind,  with- 
out trace  of  envy  or  rancor,  a  true  lover  of  his  fellows. 
Fond  of  the  open  air  and  the  water,  he  "walked  a  Shoot- 
ing" and  "went  a  fishing"  with  wholesome  zest.  Plainly 
of  a  genial  temper,  tactful  and  loyal,  he  continued  at  in- 
tervals to  visit  "my  Lord"  Cornbury  in  his  durance  in 
the  debtors'  prison,  up  to  the  departure  of  that  discred- 
ited nobleman,  at  whose  wife's  funeral  he  had  delivered 
an  eloquent  tribute.^  He  also  won  and  held  the  esteem 
of  his  successor.  Governor  Hunter,  and  of  such  public 
leaders  as  Col.  Lewis  Morris,  afterward  chief  justice, 
and  Col.  Caleb  Heathcote,  mayor  of  the  city,  as  well  as 
the  regard  of  his  own  more  intimate  associates,  Elias 
Neau,  catechist,  and  William  Huddleston,  master  of 
the  charity  school.  On  one  occasion  he  acted  as  security 
for  William  Bradford,  the  printer,  on  a  bond  to  the 
vestry  of  Trinity.^  But  social  diversions  and  physical 
recreation  could  not  interfere  with  his  performance  of 
duty,  to  judge  by  the  monotonous  entries,  "at  Study" 
and  "preach'd." 

He  seems  to  have  been  popular  with  his  troops,  whom 

Book,    vol.    II A     (copies),    1704-  ford  copy  is  in  the  Library  of  the 

1706,  no.  cxlii.  Historical  Society  of  Pennsylvania. 

^  Ibid.,  no.  Ixxvii.  Copies  of  the  reprints  are  less  rare. 

^This   sermon,  printed  by   Brad-  '"Journal,"  March  13,  1711;  cor- 

ford  at  New  York  in  1706,  was  twice  roborated  in  Trinity  vestry  minutes, 

reprinted  at  London,  and  sold  "for  I,  58,  81. 
the  Benefit  of  the  Poor."    A  Brad- 


48       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

he  accompanied  on  the  expeditions  of  1709  and  1711 
against  the  French  in  northern  New  York.  At  times  he 
addressed  the  Iroquois  on  religious  topics,  such  ministra- 
tions being  regularly  supplemented  with  "a  barrell  of 
beer."    For  a  large  part  of  his  term  the  old  chapel  in  the 


First  page  (reduced)  of  Sharpe  diary.    See  pp.  43-44. 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  49 

fort  was  in  a  ruinous  state;  but,  on  its  restoration  by 
Governor  Hunter  in  1711/  he  held  services  there  reg- 
ularly. During  the  interval  he  had  made  tours  embrac- 
ing Long  Island  and  neighboring  towns  in  New  York 
and  in  a  portion  of  Connecticut,  to  officiate  in  communi- 
ties without  church  organization,  thereby  accomplishing, 
in  the  words  of  Elias  Neau,  "a  great  deal  of  good  here 
these  six  Years."  ^  His  return  from  these  little  trips,  as 
well  as  from  longer  ones,  invariably  brings  out  a  fervent 
"Deo  Gratias''  in  the  journal. 

On  November  2,  1710,  the  good  chaplain  seems  to 
have  reached  the  acme  of  himian  happiness,  to  judge 
from  an  entry  heavily  underscored  in  scarlet:  "This  day 
I  was  married  to  my  dearest  M^^  Margarita  Dreyer, 
Deo  Gloria  in  Eternum"  According  to  such  evidence 
as  is  now  available,  this  young  woman  was  a  daughter 
of  Andries  Draeyer  (or  Drauyer),  a  Dane,^  who  had 
commanded  at  Fort  Albany  in  later  days  of  Dutch  rule, 
and  who  was  an  officer  of  the  Dutch  fleet  in  American 
waters.  Another  daughter,  Anna  Dorothea,  became  the 
wife  of  the  Rev.  Thomas  Barclay,  D.D.,  rector  of  St. 
Peter's  Church  at  Albany,^  whose  son  Henry,  second 

^  "The  Queens  Chappel  in  the  Fort,  *  Elias    Neau    to   the    Rev.    John 

that  from  the  time  of  Coll  Fletcher  Chamberlayne,  July  5,  1710.     8.  P. 

till    his     [Gov.     Hunter's]     arrivall  O.  Letter  Book. 

had  been  put  to  the  several  uses  ^  His  wife  was  Gerritje  Van 
of  Store  house,  Bear  house,  and  Schaick,  whose  sister  was  the  wife 
work  house,  he  took  care  to  have  of  the  Rev.  Bernardus  Freeman,  a 
decently  fitted  up  and  applyed  to  Reformed  Dutch  minister  at  New 
the  use  it  was  built  for,  and  the  Utrecht,  L.  I.,  and  formerly  a  suc- 
Soldiers,  who  before  were  carried  cessful  missionary  among  the  Mo- 
out  of  the  Garrison  and  during  the  hawks.  He  had  been  appointed  by 
service  stood  for  the  most  part  in  Gov.  Bellomont  until  an  English 
the  Steeple,  where  they  could  but  clergyman  should  be  sent  over, 
imperfectly  hear,  are  now  very  well  *  Joseph  Hooper.  A  History  of 
accommodated  with  Seats  in  the  Saint  Peter's  Church  in  the  City  of 
Chappel,  where  the  service  is  regu-  Albany.  Albany,  1900.  P.  63;  also, 
larly  performed."  Col.  Morris  to  R.  Burnham  Moffat.  The  Barclays 
Secy.  Chamberlavne,  Feb.  20,  1711.  of  New  York.  New  York,  1904. 
N.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,\,  320.  P.  51. 


50       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

rector  of  Trinity  Church,  was  to  be  in  1754  a  member  of 
the  first  board  of  Trustees  of  the  New  York  Society- 
Library. 

The  Sharpe  diary,  to  its  abrupt  close  in  1713,  con- 
tains not  a  word  about  its  author's  Hterary  tastes,  let 
alone  his  private  library  or  plans  for  a  public  institution. 
Nor  is  it  till  near  the  end  of  his  sojourn  in  New  York 
that  his  views  on  the  subject  begin  to  appear  in  his  cor- 
respondence. In  a  long  letter^  to  the  secretary  of  the 
S.  P.  G.,  dated  December  4,  1710,  he  says  in  part  that  it 
would  be  "highly  conducive"  to  the  work  of  the  Society 
to  have  "provincial  and  parochial  Librarys  erected,"  "a 
great  many  good  Collections  of  Books"  having  been  sent 
to  "the  Metropolis  of  the  several  provinces  of  Maryland, 
Pensylvania,  New  York  and  Boston."  If  these  collec- 
tions were  only  "under  good  regulation,  there  would  be 
considerable  Additions  made  dayly  by  Charitable  Per- 
sons here."  To  prevent  the  "Inconvenience"  of  the 
books'  becoming  scattered,  "it  wou'd  be  very  Adviseable 
that  there  shou'd  be  Compleat  Catalogues  of  the  several 
parochial  Librarys  lodged  in  the  hand  of  some  Minister 
or  Member  of  the  Society,  according  to  which  the  Li- 
braries might  be  now  and  then  reviewed  and  secured 
upon  the  death  or  removal  of  any  of  the  Missionary's" ; 
and,  in  case  of  additions  through  "the  Benevolence  of 
any  here,  it  might  be  Notifyed  to  the  Ven^l^  Society." 

Coming  to  his  personal  interest  in  the  matter,  the 
chaplain  continues : 

M^  Talbot  and  I  have  talked  of  building  a  Superstructure,  to 
which  I  will  sell  one  part  and  dedicate  the  other  of  my  small 
Library  upon  my  death  or  removal  from  this  Country.     I  have 

^8.  P.  G.  Letter  Book   (copies),       in  Gen.  Conv.  Arch.,  N.  Y.  MSS.,  I, 
vol.  VI,  1710-1711,  no.  i.    A  copy  is       230-232. 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  51 

sent  you  a  Catalogue  of  such  as  I  wou'd  sell  to  the  Society  (hav- 
ing others  in  my  View  to  fill  up  the  room) .  As  for  the  price  I 
leave  it  to  be  set  by  the  Society's  Book-seller,  and  if  you  agree 
to  take  them  I  shall  give  Orders  where  the  Money  shall  be  paid, 
and  before  such  Order,  upon  the  Intimation  of  your  pleasure, 
shall  deliver  them  to  M^  Talbot  or  any  others  you  shall  appoint, 
and  transmit  the  receipt  of  them  before  I  receive  the  Money. 

He  concludes  with  a  request  for  "some  hundred  of  the 
Society's  Seal  to  ffix  on  the  adverse  page  of  the  Titile 
page  as  is  usual."  ^ 

Two  years  passed,  however,  without  any  action  or 
further  mention  of  the  purpose  in  his  heart,  until  March, 
1713,  when  Governor  Hunter  granted  him  leave  of  ab- 
sence, nominally  "to  see  his  aged  Parent,"^  but  no  less 
particularly  to  set  forth  "y®  Posture  of  Ecclesiastical 
Affairs  in  these  Provinces"^  to  the  church  authorities 
at  home.  He  bore  with  him  letters  of  high  endorsement 
from  the  governor  to  English  dignitaries.  In  one  he  is 
said  to  have  "too  much  Sence  to  be  Imposed  on  and  too 
much  Probity  to  Impose  upon  others,"^  and  in  another 
characterized  as  "a  very  worthy,  ingenious,  and  con- 
scientious clergyman."^  But  a  single  jarring  note  ap- 
pears to  have  been  struck  amid  the  general  chords  of 
approval.  It  sounds  as  follows  from  General  Francis 
Nicholson,  formerly  governor  of  Virginia,  in  a  commu- 

^  Not   one  volume  of  the   Sharpe  ^  Gov.    Hunter    to    the    Secretary, 

collection,  however,  bears   an  S.   P.  March   14,    1713.     S.   P.    G.   Letter 

G.  bookplate.  Book    (copies),   vol.  VIII  A,   1712- 

^  His  mother  is  of  course  meant,  1713,  no.  xv,  p.  123. 

as    the    records    of    the    Presbytery  *  Ibid. 

of   Ellon,    Aberdeenshire,    Scotland,  ^  Gov.     Hunter    to    Dean    Swift, 

show  that  the  Rev.  Alexander  Sharp  March  14,  1713.    Letters  written  by 

died  Feb.  20,  1709,  his  son,  accord-  Jonathan  Swift,  D.D.  .  .  .  and  Sev- 

ing    to    his    journal,    receiving    on  eral  of  his  Friends.     London,  1767. 

August    29th    "ane    account    of   my  Vol.  I,  pp.  281-282.     See  also  "The 

dear  ffathers  death  |-  Brl"  to  which  Rev.  Mr.  Sharpe  to  Dr.  Swift,"  ibid., 

sad  entry  he  adds  in  characteristic  pp.  320-321. 
fashion  "Requiem  Etemam." 


52       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

nication  to  the  secretary  of  the  S.  P.  G.,  from  Boston, 
December  1,  1713,  several  months  after  John  Sharpe's 
return  to  England : 

I  beg  the  Society  will  be  pleased  not  to  give  intire  Credit  to 
any  offer  or  Representation  of  the  Rev^  M^  Jn^  Sharpe  (late 
Chaplain  to  Her  Majestys  forces  in  N  York  Governmt)  for 
himself  or  others  without  Good  Authority  and  Proofs  I  know- 
ing him  to  be  a  Person  of  double  dealing  &9  and  am  Sorry  I 
am  not  in  London  to  call  him  to  Ace*  as  a  Deserter  for  running 
away  from  his  Duty  as  Chaplain  to  the  said  Forces  on  the  last 
Designed  Expedition  to  Canada  and  more  heartily  Sorry  to 
have  this  and  many  other  things  to  lay  to  the  charge  of  any 
Person  in  Sacred  Orders.^ 

More  in  explanation  of  such  language  than  of  the 
charge  conveyed,  it  must  be  said  that  Francis  Nicholson, 
though  a  generous  contributor  to  the  interests  of  the 
church  in  Virginia  and  South  Carolina,  was  jealous, 
passionate  and  headstrong  in  temperament,  and  far 
from  deserving  "intire  Credit  to  any  offer  or  Representa- 
tion" he  himself  might  make.  Bitterly  chagrined  at  the 
failure  of  his  carefully  planned  expedition,  he  was  only 
too  ready  to  denounce  any  one  connected  with  it.  That 
his  charge  was  unjust  in  this  case  is  plain  from  the 
Sharpe  diary,  whose  author  left  Camp  Nicholson  in 
September,  1711,  because  of  illness,  proofs  of  which,  in- 
cluding a  physician's  "affadavit,"  were  several  times  sent 
to  the  general. 

It  is  evident  that  Chaplain  Sharpe  not  only  had  kept 
in  mind  his  Library  plan  but  had  been  developing  it  all 
the  while,  and  was  to  make  its  announcement  one  of  the 
main  objects  of  his  visit  to  England.    For,  on  the  eve  of 

^  8.  P.  G.  Letter  Book,  vol.  VIII,  p.  595. 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  58 

his  departure,  he  drew  up  a  remarkable  paper,  dated 
March  11,  1713,  in  which  he  declared  it  his  intention  to 
promote  the  establishment  of  "A  Pubhck  School,"  "A 

^ If  <^      «    oO 

le^  fiH^:ini^t^^f  iJ  cry-  >^c^  ^ <^<^ ' 

c^  Ifi^Q^ti^i'J  ct/^Al^  ftC4yriJZ<^*^cf  yy^^f^^^f^^  ^^y-r&^t. 

First  page  (reduced)  of  Sharpe  Proposals.    See  pp.  53-54, 


54       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

Publick  Library"  and  "A  Catechising  Chappel"  in  the 
city  of  New  York. 

He  mournfully  explains  that  "There  is  hardly  any 
thing  which  is  more  wanted  in  this  Countrey  than  learn- 
ing there  being  no  place  I  know  of  in  America  where  it 
is  either  less  encouraged  or  regarded."  This  sad  condi- 
tion he  accounts  for  in  the  following  words,  which  sug- 
gest an  applicability  to  New  York  in  less  remote  times. 
"The  City,"  he  says,  "is  so  conveniently  Scituated  for 
Trade  and  the  Genius  of  the  people  so  inclined  to  mer- 
chandise, that  they  generaly  seek  no  other  Education 
for  their  children  than  writing  and  arithmetick.  So 
that  letters  must  be  in  a  manner  forced  upon  them  not 
only  without  their  seeking,  but  against  their  consent." 

After  elaborating  his  theories  of  founding  and  gov- 
erning schools,  he  proceeds  to  "The  Library,"  saying: 
"Another  thing  which  is  very  much  wanted  here  is  a 
publick  Library,  which  would  very  much  advance  both 
learning  and  piety.  Such  there  are  at  Charles  Town  in 
Carolina,  Annapolis  in  Mary  Land,  at  Philadelphia  and 
Boston.  Some  books  have  been  formerly  sent  to  New 
York  but  as  parochial  they  remain  in  the  hands  of  the 
Incumbent."  In  contradistinction  to  this  last-named— 
at  once  recognizable  as  the  Library  of  Trinity  parish — 
the  proposed  institution  should  be  "publick  and  pro- 
vincial" and  "open  every  day  in  the  week  at  convenient 
hours,"  when  "all  men  may  have  liberty  to  read  in  the 
Library."  As  evidence  of  his  advanced  ideas,  it  need 
only  be  said  that  the  Society  Library,  founded  in  1754, 
was  not  made  accessible  daily  until  1791. 

Eight  regulations  are  suggested,  by  which,  in  addition 
to  the  above,  it  appears  that  the  use  of  the  books  and  the 
lighting  should  be  free,  though  each  borrower  of  a  vol- 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  55 

ume  must  "sign  to  a  receipt  or  obligation  to  return  it  at 
such  a  time,"  for  which  the  Hbrarian  was  to  receive  six- 
pence. Also,  the  subscription  element  was  to  be  purely 
voluntary,  a  book  to  "ly  on  the  table  where  it  may  be 
lawful  for  others  to  subscribe  books  or  money."  A  cat- 
alogue, signed  by  the  governor,  the  mayor  and  a  clergy- 
man, must  be  sent  to  the  English  primate;  and  like  the 
Bray  libraries  the  proposed  institution  must  be  visited 
once  in  three  years  by  these  same  officials,  who  should 
"certify  the  improvements  or  Embezelments  to  the 
Trustees  in  England  to  be  appoynted  by  his  Grace  the 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and  the  Bishop  of  London." 
His  plan  expands,  amazing  in  its  scope,  as  he  beholds 
the  Library  "a  Repository  of  all  such  Rarities  as  the 
Coimtrey  produces,  or  are  brought  hither  from  other 
places  to  be  communicated  to  the  Ingenious  in  Europe." 
It  might  as  well  comprise  also  "a  small  garden  of  rare 
and  Exotick  plants  to  send  yearly  some  to  the  curious  in 
England  and  have  others  in  Exchange."  ^  And  he  was 
desirous  to  have  the  Library  under  the  same  roof  as  the 

^  There  is  in  this  proposition  not  ments  of  each  country,  may  at  once 
a  little  resemblance  to  the  scheme  and  always  be  assigned  to  their  true 
of  the  celebrated  Frenchman,  Alex-  origin,  and  always  verified  without 
andre  Vattemare,  for  "an  interna-  doubt  or  difficulty."  Address  of  M. 
tional  exchange  of  all  that  is  valu-  Vattemare  before  the  two  houses  of 
able  in  science,  literature,  natural  the  N.  Y.  Legislature,  Oct.  20,  1847. 
history  and  the  fine  arts— and  the  This  was  a  mission  he  had  been  con- 
establishment  in  every  nation  and  ducting  for  twenty  years  with  fitful 
state  of  an  institution  (under  the  success.  It  was  in  consequence  of 
fostering  care  of  its  government),  his  securing  to  the  city  of  New 
to  receive  these  exchanges,  forming  York,  in  1848,  for  example,  a 
not  only  a  museum  illustrative  as  "splendid  case  of  valuable  medals, 
well  of  the  powers  of  nature,  as  of  commemorative  of  interesting  events 
the  state  of  perfection  to  which  the  during  the  administration  of"  Pope 
productions  of  the  human  mind  and  Pius  IX,  that  the  present  City  Li- 
hand  have  arrived,  or  are  tending  brary  was  instituted  in  the  City  Hall 
to  in  every  quarter  of  the  globe,  by  the  local  authorities  in  January, 
but  a  kind  of  patent  office^  where  1849.  See  Proceedings  of  the  Boards 
the  creations  of  the  industry,  the  of  Aldermen  and  Assistant  Alder- 
achievement  of  the  intellect,  of  the  men  approved  by  the  Mayor.  Vol. 
inventive   faculties,   and   of  govern-  XVI.    New  York,  1849. 


56       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

school,  for  it  would  be  "a  motive  to  the  Industry  and 
application  of  the  scholars  when  they  see  so  good  provi- 
sion made  for  their  Studys."  O  Chaplain,  great  was  thy 
faith! 

The  innate  sincerity  and  goodness  of  the  man  shine 
out  in  the  concluding  passages,  in  which  he  avows  his 
long-cherished  resolve  to  bestow  "for  a  foundation  or 
beginning  to  this  Library  ...  all  my  own  books,  which 
I  now  have  or  may  have  at  the  time  of  my  decease  or 
leaving  of  that  countrey,  which  shall  be  put  up  in  it  how 
soon  it  is  fitted  to  receive  them";  for,  he  pathetically 
acknowledges,  "the  undertaking  looks  so  formidably 
great  (at  first)  that  something  must  be  done  to  make  it 
seem  possible."  Modestly  reserving  for  himself  "during 
life  or  stay  in  the  countrey  free  access"  to  the  Library  of 
his  dreams,  "and  leave  to  borrow  .  .  .  under  the  same 
restrictions  and  limitations  as  others,"  he  reverently  en- 
treats in  closing:  "So  God  prosper  the  work." 

Appended  to  the  "Proposals"  is  a  catalogue  of  his 
precious  collection,  "intended  to  be  given  as  a  founda- 
tion of  a  Publick  Library  at  New  York,"  comprising 
146  volumes,  of  which  105  appear  to  have  been  left  be- 
hind by  the  donor.  They  are  classified  much  like  the 
Bray  collections,  as  follows : 

I  the  holy  Scriptures,  9;  II  Criticks  and  Commentators,  20; 
III  Fathers  and  Schoolmen,  20 ;  IV  Discourses,  Apologetical,  6 ; 
V  Ecclesiastical  History,-  Chronology,  Chorography,  4;  VI 
Body's  of  Divinity,  18;  VII  Practical  Divinity,  M;  VIII  Con- 
troversial Tracts,  11 ;  IX  Philology,  History,  &c,  18;  X  Devo- 
tional, 16. 

These  books  were  left  with  his  friend  Ehas  Neau,  until 
the  passage  of  an  act  of  assembly,  which  he  confidently 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  57 

predicts  "can  be  easily  obtained  to  secure  the  said 
Library  for  ever."^ 

The  original  manuscript  is  now  in  the  Library  of 
Lambeth  Palace.^  A  somewhat  defective  copy,  now  in 
the  Bodleian  Library  at  Oxford,  contains  a  dedicatory 
page,  dated  in  London,  July  11,  1713,  and  thus  in- 
scribed : 

To  THE  MOST  Reverend  Fathers  in  God  the  Arch  Bishops,  To  the 
Right  Reverend  the  Bishops,  To  the  Reverend  the  Clergy.  And 
to  all  the  Learned  and  pious  Patrons  and  Promoters  of  Piety 
and  Learning  in  the  Kingdom  of  Great  Britaine 

This  following  Proposal  as  a  means  of  its  Advancement  in  the 
Province  of  New  York  and  other  parts  of  America 

Is  most  humbly  dedicated  and  with  most  profound  Respect 
and  Deference  to  their  Godly  Wisdom,  is  intirely  Submitted  by, 

Their  most  faithfull  Servant  and  fFellow-Labourer  in  Christ 
Jesus  our  Lord  and  Master 

John  Shabpe  Chaplaine  to  her  Majestys  Garisons  in  the 
province  of  New  York.^ 

The  catalogue  attached  to  this  copy  is  dated  May  15, 
1715,  and  enumerates  238  volumes,  including  those  left 
behind,  "given  towards  laying  the  Foundation  of  a  Pub- 
lick  Library  at  New  York  in  America."  This  statement 
of  actual  gift  is  borne  out  by  the  final  paragraph:  "Lon- 
don July  15^  1715.  To  the  Glory  of  God  and  the  Ad- 
vancement of  true  Religion  and  Virtue  in  the  Infant 
Church  of  America  I  do  freely  and  heartily  give  &  re- 
sign at  this  time  all  the  above  mentioned  books."    The 

^  From  his  copy  of  1715.  Historical  Society  for  1880,  though 
-  The  MS.  itself  bears  no  label  or  a  comparison  of  its  text  with  photo- 
endorsement.  In  the  Lambeth  cata-  graphs  of  the  original  document 
logue  it  is  in  vol.  841,  "Proposals  discloses  variations  in  spelling,  etc. 
for  erecting  a  School,  Library  and  ^  A  copy  of  this  copy  is  in  the 
Chapel  at  New  York,  1712-13."  8.  P.  G.  Letter  Book,  "Letters  Re- 
The  paper  was  printed  in  full  in  ceived,"  vol.  X  A  (copies),  1714- 
the    Collections    of   the   New    York  1715. 


58       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

additional  volumes  were  despatched  oversea  for  Elias 
Neau  to  put  with  those  already  in  his  hands,  the  whole 
collection  being  thereupon  formally  presented  by  Dr. 
Sharpe,  as  he  had  then  become,  to  the  Society  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  trust  for  a  Public  Library/ 

Nevertheless,  despite  his  sanguine  expectation  and  ef- 
forts of  the  Venerable  Society,  seconded  by  Elias  Neau 
and  Chaplain  Jenney,^  and  notwithstanding  the  evident 
favor  of  Governors  Hunter  and  Burnet  in  turn,  no 
measure  to  establish  the  proposed  Library  by  statute 
seems  even  to  have  come  before  the  provincial  legislature.^ 
In  May,  1723,  Governor  Burnet  wrote  to  Secretary 
Humphreys  of  the  S.  P.  G.  that  he  had  received  the 
books  from  Mr.  Neau,  but  that  he  feared  it  would  "take 
some  time  to  bring  the  Assembly  into  the  Notion  of  a 
Publick  Library."^ 

So  the  little  collection  remained  with  the  governor. 
In  all  likelihood  it  was  examined  by  young  Benjamin 
Franklin  when  entertained  by  Burnet  in  1724,  for  in  his 
autobiography  Franklin  says:  "The  then  governor  of 
New  York,  Burnet  (son  of  Bishop  Burnet),  hearing 
from  the  captain  that  a  young  man,  one  of  his  pas- 
sengers, had  a  great  many  books,  desir'd  he  would  bring 
me  to  see  him.  .  .  .  The  gov'r.  treated  me  with  great 
civility,  show'd  me  his  library,  which  was  a  very  large 
one,  and  we  had  a  good  deal  of  conversation  about  books 
and  authors."^    It  is  natural  to  suppose  that  their  talk 

^  Basis    for    these    statements    is  to    become    Laws,    1685-1770."    MS. 

found    in    the    correspondence    be-  no.  44,  State  Library,  Albany, 

tween    Elias    Neau,    Gov.    Hunter,  *  8.  P.  G.  Letter  Book,  vol.  XVII  A 

Gov.    Burnet,    et    al.    and   the   secy.  (copies),  1722-1723,  pp.  230-231. 

of  the  S.  P.  G.,  in  the  8.  P.  G.  Let-  "^  The  Complete  Works  of  Benja- 

ter  Books.  tnin     Franklin.      Edited     by     John 

=^  See  p.  28.  Bigelow.     New  York,  1887.     Vol.  I, 

^  This  fact  is  established  by  a  vain  pp.  73-74. 
search  through  "Bills  which   failed 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  59 

embraced  a  discussion,  not  merely  of  the  Sharpe  plans, 
but  also  of  the  general  "Notion  of  a  Publick  Library." 

Whether  or  not  Franklin,  "the  father  of  social  li- 
braries in  this  country,"  ^  in  listening  to  the  proposals  of 
poor  Chaplain  Sharpe,  then  and  there  received  the  in- 
spiration that  eventually  led  him  to  organize  a  library  in 
his  adopted  home,  is  of  course  purely  a  matter  for  con- 
jecture. His  institution,  which  he  calls  "the  Philadel- 
phia public  library"^  and  "the  mother  of  all  the  North 
American  subscription  libraries,"^  was  founded  in  1731 
and  formally  chartered  eleven  years  later  as  The 
Library  Company  of  Philadelphia,  and  is  to-day  the 
largest  as  well  as  the  oldest  Proprietary  Library  in  the 
United  States. 

There  is  nothing,  however,  in  Franklin's  available 
writings  to  confirm  or  even  to  suggest  any  indebtedness 
to  Sharpe.  And  if  such  a  surmise  should  ever  prove 
true,  ahead  of  Sharpe  appears  the  primal  genius  of 
Bray;  while,  moreover,  Franklin's  own  birthplace,  Bos- 
ton, possessed  a  "publike  Library"  in  its  town  house 
prior  to  1675.^  Nor  would  our  great  savant's  reputa- 
tion for  originality  suffer  by  such  an  admission.  His 
acuteness  of  perception,  no  less  than  his  public  spirit,  is 
revealed  in  his  successfully  adapting  the  ineffectual 
plans  of  Bray  and  Sharpe  ( for  institutions  publicly  sup- 
ported) to  the  subscription  scheme,  in  which  movement 
he  is  regarded  as  the  pioneer  of  the  English-speaking 
world.^ 

To  return  to  John  Sharpe  in  closing.    Unfortunately 

^  Free  Public  Libraries,  a  pamphlet  '  Ibid.,  I,  159. 

published  by  the  American  Social  Sci-  *  See  p.  ^n2. 

ence  Association.    Boston,  1871.   P.  3.  "  Ainsworth  R.  Spofford.    A  Book 

^The  Complete  Works  of  Benja-  for  All  Readers.     New  York,  1900. 

min  Franklin.    Edited  by  John  Big-  P.  999. 
elow,  N.  Y.,  1887.    Vol.  I,  p.  167. 


60       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

his  last  years  are  at  the  present  writing  shrouded  in  ob- 
scurity. Soon  after  his  return  from  America,  he  took 
his  doctor's  degree  in  divinity,  January  6,  1714,  at  his 
loved  alma  mater,  King's  College  in  the  University  of 
Aberdeen,  his  thesis  being  "a  latine  discourse  upon  some 
subject  in  theologie."^  In  June  of  that  year  he  inno- 
cently fell  among  thorns  in  suffering  himself  to  be 
"forcibly  presented"  by  two  of  his  Aberdeen  faculty  into 
the  pulpit  of  Old  Machar,  where  he  gave  further  offence 
by  using  the  Anglican  ritual.  In  the  justiciary  process 
that  ensued  at  Edinburgh,  he  was  sentenced  to  be  "un- 
capable  of  enjoying  any  parish  Church  Stipend  or  Bene- 
fice within  Scotland  for  the  Space  of  Seven  years,"— in 
effect  a  virtual  decree  of  banishment  from  his  native 
heath.^ 

The  next  known  of  him  is  that  in  1717  he  published  a 
treatise  in  London,  a  work  of  a  scholarly  and  deeply 
rehgious  character.^  In  the  meantime  he  had  resigned 
the  chaplaincy  at  New  York,  his  successor,  the  Rev. 
Robert  Jenney,  receiving  a  commission  from  King 
George  I,  dated  September  17,  1717.^  Then  comes  a 
melancholy  allusion  to  "the  late  D^  Sharpe,  once  Chap- 
lain to  the  Garrison,"  in  a  letter  written  by  Secretary 
Humphreys  to  Governor  Burnet  in  June,  1722.^ 

^  From      the       faculty      minutes,  Christ,   explain'd  in   Two   Hundred 

King's    College,    Aberdeen,    Jan.    2,  Conclusions    and    Corollaries,    from 

1714.     The  thesis,   a   16-page  pam-  the    Last    Words    of    our    Blessed 

phlet,  entitled  De  Rehus  Liturgicis,  Lord   to   his  Disciples  .  .  .  London, 

was  printed  at  Aberdeen  the  same  1717.      A    copy    is    in    the    British 

year.     A  copy  is  in  the  Library  of  Museum. 

Glasgow  University.  *  "Grant  Warrants,"  Colonial  Of- 

*  See    Oncers    and    Graduates    of  fice,  London.    Vol.  XV,  p.  114. 

University      and     King's      College,  °  A     puzzling     allusion     to     Dr. 

Aberdeen,  MVD-MDCGCLX.     Ab-  Sharpe    appears    in    a    letter    from 

erdeen,  1893;   also,  MS.  "Justiciary  the  Rev.  John  Milne  of  Albany  to  the 

Decisions,    Edinburgh,    1710-1721,"  S,  P.  G.,  dated  June  20,  1728.     Re- 

vol.  II.     (Copy  in  Society  Library.)  f erring  to  his  predecessor.  Dr.  Bar- 

'The  Charter  of  the  Kingdom  of  clay,  he  says:  "The  prejudices  which 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  61 

It  is  sad  indeed,  not  only  that  the  date  of  death  and 
the  burial-place  of  this  first  proposer  of  a  free  Public 
Library  in  New  York  are  unknown,  but  also  that  the 
last  days  of  so  public-spirited  a  man  should  have  been 
spent  in  poverty  and  neglect.  For  it  appears  from  let- 
ters of  Governor  Burnet  and  Ehas  Neau  that  he  had 
become  so  destitute  as  to  have  written  to  the  latter,  in 
the  spring  of  1721,  asking  piteously  for  the  return  of  his 
as  yet  un-established  Library  "to  get  a  little  Money  to 
subsist  on,"  being  "very  poor"  and  "reduced  to  a  state  of 
misery."  More  important  a  date  to  posterity  than  that 
of  his  death,  however,  is  the  year  1713,  when  a  Public 
Library  was  first  proposed  in  New  York;  and  a  higher 
sentiment  than  even  a  gravestone  could  evoke  lingers 
about  the  remains  of  John  Sharpens  beloved  collection 
to-day,  in  their  last  quiet  resting-place  in  the  New  York 
Society  Library. 

How  and  when  these  books,  now  numbering  124  vol- 
umes under  104  titles,^  actually  became  a  part  of  the 
Society  Library,  cannot  confidently  be  told  at  the  pres- 
ent writing,  notwithstanding  long  and  diligent  search, 
for  the  records  of  that  institution  are  absolutely  mute  on 
the  subject.  The  following  theory  as  to  their  history  is 
suggested  as  tenable,  at  least  until  the  facts  come  to 
light.  In  the  first  place  they  seem  never  to  have  formed 
a  part  of  the  Trinity  Parish  Library,  as  the  catalogue  of 
that  collection  includes  comparatively  few  of  their  titles, 
and  those  the  common  ones  of  the  day.  It  is  probable, 
then,  that  they  were  joined  to  the  Corporation  Library, 

he   and    one    Sharp    his   brother-in-       place."     (Copy  in  Gen.  Conv.  Arch., 
law,  who  is  since  gone  to  the  Church      N.  Y.  MSS,,  vol.  II,  pp.  18-20.) 
of     Rome,     have     given     too     just  ^The     Sharpe     Collection     to-day 

ground  for,  are  like  to  be  the  great-       comprises   49    folios,   3    quartos,    13 
est  obstacles  I  shall  meet  with  in  this       octavos,    13   duodecimos   and   46    of 

smaller  fold. 


62       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

on  its  arrival  and  opening  in  1730,  Governor  Burnet 
having  no  doubt  left  them  in  trust  to  his  successor,  Gov- 
ernor Montgomerie. 

In  1754,  when  the  Society  Library  was  founded  and 
was  allowed  to  store  its  new  collection  in  the  City  Hall, 
on  condition  of  caring  for  the  worn-out  Corporation  Li- 
brary, permission  was  given  also  to  box  up  books  held 
to  be  "of  no  Service  &  scarce  ever  read."  Many  of  the 
Sharpe  tomes  would  have  answered  this  description  as 
perfectly  then  as  now,  and  may  well  have  been  the  ones 
meant.  So,  when  such  few  books  as  the  vandals  spared 
in  1776  were  hastily  given  sanctuary  in  St.  Paul's 
Chapel,  it  was  an  easy  matter  to  carry  the  boxes  to  that 
place  of  safety.  Otherwise  it  would  be  hard  to  explain 
how  the  collection  should  have  been  preserved  compara- 
tively intact. 

After  slumbering  a  generation  longer,  the  books  at 
last  saw  the  light  again  upon  the  opening  of  that  room. 
From  what  will  be  said  later,  it  is  plain  that  no  portion 
of  the  Corporation  Library  shared  this  captivity.  But, 
as  the  Sharpe  books  bore  no  S.  P.  G.  bookplate  and  yet 
were  known  to  have  been  under  the  control  of  the  "City 
Library,"  as  the  Society  Library  was  commonly  called 
in  its  early  years,  it  is  probable  that  they  were  at  once 
handed  over  to  that  institution,  on  the  release  and  distri- 
bution of  the  long-imprisoned  collections  in  1802.  That 
they  were  preserved  in  St.  Paul's  Chapel  seems  reason- 
ably certain  from  the  fact,  already  mentioned,  that  a 
single  volume  bearing  John  Sharpe's  name  has  been 
kept  for  years  with  the  relics  of  the  Trinity  parochial 
collection.  The  probability  also  is  that  together  with 
them  went,  naturally  enough,  the  old  Clarendon  history, 
doubtless  because  it  also  bore  no  S.  P.  G.  bookplate  and 


THE  SHARPE  COLLECTION  6S 

chiefly  because  of  its  label,  "Belonging  to  y®  Library  of 
New  York  in  America,"  which,  with  the  character  of  the 
book,  would  not  readily  suggest  its  former  connection 
with  the  Parish  Library.  The  dominant  fact,  however, 
is  this:  the  Sharpe  books  and  this  Clarendon  history 
came  to  the  Society  Library  sometime  between  1800  and 
1813,  for  they  are  enumerated  for  the  first  time  in  the 
catalogue  of  the  latter  year. 

As  for  these  venerable  books  themselves,  each  of  the 
weary-looking  volumes  displays  on  fly-leaf  or  title-page 
the  good  chaplain's  autograph,  written  in  a  variety  of 
ways,  as  "Johannis  Sharpe,"  "Joh:  Sharpe,"  and  "John 
Sharp,"  together  with  the  year  of  acquisition  in  each 
case.  It  appears  he  dropped  the  final  "e"  after  leaving 
America;  but  it  is  retained  in  this  work  for  the  reason 
that  he  so  spelled  his  name  during  his  residence  in  New 
Fork,  and  on  his  Proposals.  In  some  of  the  books  oc- 
curs also  this  motto,  "^Ad  quid  venisti?/^  which  may  con- 
vey a  choice  of  meanings  according  to  the  emphasis  in 
the  modern  translation,  "What  have  you  come  to?"  Is  it 
a  lamentation  or  a  jest,  or  may  it  not  be  simply,  to  quote 
the  Proposals,  "on  the  title  page  or  cover  such  inscrip- 
tion badge  or  Impression  as  the  Trustees  shall  appoynt." 

In  response  to  the  natural  query  why  the  idea  of  a 
Public  Library  as  proposed  by  Dr.  Sharpe  did  not  strike 
root  in  New  York,  it  may  be  replied  that  in  the  narrow 
and  jealous  view  of  the  average  provincial  assembly- 
man^ it  was  merely  an  administrative  measure,  which 
would  call  for  annual  appropriations  from  the  treasury, 

^Governor  Hunter  wrote  to  Dean  in  the  universe.     And  if  our  trees 
Swift   from   New  York,   March   14,  and  birds  could  speak,  and  our  as- 
1713,  in  the  same  letter  in  which  he  semblymen  be  silent,  the  finest  con- 
spoke    so    highly    of    John    Sharpe:  versation  too."    See  p.  51nS. 
"Here  is  the  finest  air  to  live  upon 


64       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

besides  giving  a  purchase  for  interference  from  the  ex- 
ecutive or  from  the  home  government  at  some  future 
time.  Furthermore,  as  in  the  case  of  the  earUer  Parish 
Library,  the  proposed  institution  would  be  under  An- 
glican control  largely,  a  prospect  none  too  pleasing  to 
the  "Dissenters"  of  the  Dutch  Church,  still  in  a  strong 
majority.  But  above  all  else,  there  had  not  as  yet  been 
developed  the  proper  intellectual  activity  to  offer  sym- 
pathy and  support  to  the  plan.  Like  Dr.  Bray,  John 
Sharpe  was  far  in  advance  of  his  times. 


3,  The  Millington  Bequest^  or  the  Corporation 
Library,  1730-1776 

Little  as  the  Knickerbocker  of  the  early  18th  century 
may  have  relished  the  growing  influence  of  the  estab- 
lished church,  and  reluctant  as  he  certainly  was  to  fur- 
ther—not to  say  active  in  trying  to  thwart^— the  worthy 
objects  attempted  in  her  name,  the  fact  remains  that  to 
one  of  the  organizations  sanctioned  by  the  Church  of 
England  is  due  the  credit  for  founding  the  first  Public 
Circulating  Library  in  New  York.  It  came  about  in 
this  wise. 

On  the  25th  of  March,  1728,  there  died  in  Kensington, 
England,  the  Rev.  John  Millington,  D.D.,  for  the  past 
twenty-three  years  rector  of  St.  Mary's  at  Stoke  New- 
ington,  a  parish  in  Middlesex,  about  three  miles  north  of 

^Elias  Neau,  catechist  to  the  tended  "obstacle  to  stop  the  De- 
negroes,  complained  bitterly  of  a  signes  of  the  Illustrious  Society 
city  ordinance  of  March,  1713,  "for  [S.  P.  G.],"  and  as  "a  Snare"  for 
Regulating  Negro  &  Indian  Slaves  his  school.  Mr.  Neau  to  the  Rev.  John 
in  the  Night  Time,"— by  which  they  Chamberlayne  (contemporary  trans- 
were  forbidden  to  appear  on  the  lation),  Sept.  8,  1713.  S.  P.  Q. 
streets  an  hour  after  sunset  without  Letter  Book,  vol.  VIII,  p.  173. 
lighted     "Lanthorns,"— as     an     in- 


THE  CORPORATION  LIBRARY  65 

London.  He  had  also  held  the  titles  and  offices  of  fel- 
low of  Magdalen  Hall,  Cambridge,  chaplain  to  the 
Bishop  of  London,  vicar  of  Kensington  and  preben- 
dary of  Newington.  Always  generous  to  the  church  and 
toward  his  own  parish,  at  his  death  he  left  handsome  be- 
quests to  religious  work.  Among  his  beneficiaries  was 
the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  For- 
eign Parts,  of  which  body  he  had  long  been  a  member, 
as  also  one  of  its  early  officers.^ 

In  its  annual  abstract  of  proceedings  for  1729,  the 
statement  is  made  that  he  had  bequeathed  to  the  Society 
<£200  "and  all  his  Books,  being  a  very  valuable  Library, 
which  Books  he  desires  should  be  sent  together  to  the 
Plantations  in  America;  and  the  Society  have  agreed  to 
send  them  to  New  York^  as  soon  as  an  Act  of  Assembly 
shall  be  passed  for  their  due  Preservation." 

The  Society  had  acted  promptly,  despatching  a  letter 
dated  September  23,  1728,  to  Governor  Montgomerie. 
This  notification  he  took  nearly  a  year  to  answer,  until 
he  could  give  "a  satisfactory  account  of  the  proceedings 
of  the  General  Assembly."  After  returning  thanks,  he 
calls  attention  to  enclosed  copies  of  the  action  taken  by 
the  legislature  and  by  the  Common  Council  of  the  city  to 
"effectually  provide  for  the  reception  and  preservation 
of  the  Books."  He  requests  the  exact  "dementions"  of 
the  gift,  lest  the  authorities  should  "fall  into  some  mis- 
take" in  preparing  accommodations;  and  closes  with  a 
promise  "to  have  the  room  so  contrived,  that  it  may  be 
enlarged  in  case  the  Library  encreases."  ^ 

^  For  sources  see  the  various  S.  P.  portorium  Ecclesiasticum  Parochiale 

G.  "Abstracts"  (the  N.  Y.  Hist.  Soc.  Londinense  .  .  .  Compiled  by  George 

has  a  complete  set)  ;  William  Robin-  Hennessy.    London,  1898. 

son.     The  History   and  Antiquities  ^  Governor  Montgomerie  to  the  Rev. 

of  the  Parish  of  Stoke  Newington  David   Humphreys,   D.D.,   secretary 

.  .  .  London,  1842;  and  Novum  Be-  of    the    S.    P.    G.,    Aug.    29,    1729. 


66       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

Meanwhile,  June  24,  1729,  the  assembly  had  hstened 
to  the  S.  P.  G.  letter,  as  read  by  Speaker  Adolph  Phil- 
ipse,  designating  the  collection  to  be  "a  Library,  from 
which  the  Clergy  and  Gentlemen  of  this  Government^ 
and  Jersey^  Pennsylvania  and  Connecticut,  might  bor- 
row Books  to  read,  upon  giving  Security  to  return  them 
within  a  limitted  Time."  No  doubt  murmurings  of  high 
pleasure  passed  from  one  to  another  at  the  favoring  dis- 
crimination shown  their  community,  "in  prefering  it 
before  any  of  his  Majesty's  other  Plantations  on  this 
Continent,  to  reposite  a  Library  in,"  an  institution  that 
would  "not  only  redound  to  the  Reputation  of  this  Col- 
ony, but  be  vastly  useful  and  beneficial  to  the  Inhabit- 
ants thereof."^  But  before  passing  any  resolutions  the 
Common  Council  must  be  heard  from. 

With  praiseworthy  despatch  the  city  fathers  con- 
vened three  days  later  to  act  in  their  turn.  Mayor  Lurt- 
ing  was  promptly  requested  to  thank  the  "Honourable 
House"  for  its  message,  and  to  say  they  were  "truely 
sensible  of  the  great  Advantages  which  may  arise  from 
so  Generous  and  seasonable  a  present,"  which  they  were 
"zealously  disposed  to  Receive."  They  agreed  "to  pro- 
vide a  large  Room,"  and  were  "inclin'd"  to  prepare 
"Shelves,  Desks,  Seats  and  Other  Accommodations,'^ 
when  the  precise  extent  of  the  collection  should  be  ascer- 
tained.^ 

After  an  interval  of  ten  months,  on  April  22, 1730,  the 
Common  Council  was  informed  of  the  arrival  of  twenty- 

8.  P.   G.  Letter  Book    (originals),  'Mirmtes  of  the  Common  Council 

vol.  I  B,  no.  57.  of   the   City   of  New    York,   1675- 

^  Journal  of  the   Votes  and  Pro-  1776.     New  York,   1905.     Vol.   III». 

ceedings   of   the    General  Assembly  p.  475.    The  original  letter  with  sig- 

of  the  Colony  of  New-York,  1691-  natures   is   in   the  8.   P.   O.   Letter 

1743.      Printed    by    Hugh     Gaine.  Book,  vol.  I  B,  no.  57a.    See  p.  71. 
New  York,  1764.    Vol.  I,  p.  601. 


THE  CORPORATION  LIBRARY  67 

three  cases  containing  1642  volumes,  "for  a  Publick  Li- 
brary for  this  City,"^  brought  over  in  the  good  ship 
Alexander,  Dennis  Downing,  master,  and  "ready  to  be 
landed  and  delivered."  A  committee  of  five  (including 
John  Roosevelt,  an  ancestor  of  President  Roosevelt,  and 
John  Chambers,  later  a  member  of  the  first  board  of 
Trustees  of  the  Society  Library)  was  directed  to  receive 
the  books  and  put  them  in  the  City  Hall.  Also,  should 
they  "find  Occasion,"  they  were  "to  Open  the  Said  Cases 
and  Cause  the  Said  Books  to  be  wiped  and  Cleaned  and 
an  Inventory  thereof  to  be  taken."  Lastly  they  were  to 
"Consider  of  a  proper  place  for  the  said  Library,"  and 
to  estimate  the  cost  of  its  installation. 

At  the  next  meeting  of  the  Corporation,  early  in 
June,  the  committee  announced  with  almost  childish 
precision: 

We  did  Receive  the  above  mentioned  twenty  three  Cases  of 
Books  Containing  Sixteen  hundred  and  forty  two  Volumes 
which  Cases  we  Opened  and  took  the  Books  out  and  put  them  in 
the  Assembly  Room  of  which  Alderman  Phihpse  has  the  Key.^ 
And  we  are  of  Opinion  that  the  Room  Opposite  to  the  Common 
Council  Room  in  the  City  HalP  will  be  a  proper  place  for  de- 
positing the  Said  Books  and  that  the  same  be  made  Convenient 

^  Common  Cowncil  Minutes,  IV,  10.  common  Prison.  This  Edifice  is 
'This  structure,  the  second  of  the  erected  in  a  Place  where  four 
three  City  Halls,  was  erected  in  Streets  meet,  and  fronts,  to  the 
1700  on  the  site  of  the  present  sub-  South-west,  one  of  the  most  spa- 
treasury  building  at  the  junction  of  cious  Streets  in  Town.  The  Eastern 
Wall  and  Nassau  streets,  facing  Wing,  in  the  second  Story,  consists 
Broad.  It  is  thus  described  in  the  of  the  Assembly  Chamber,  a  Lobby 
year  1756:  "The  City  Hall  is  a  and  a  small  Room  for  the  Speaker 
strong  Brick  Building,  two  Stories  of  the  House.  The  West  Wing,  on 
in  Heighth,  in  the  Shape  of  an  Ob-  the  same  Floor,  forms  the  Council 
long,  winged  with  one  at  each  End,  Room  and  a  Library;  and  in  the 
at  right  Angles  with  the  first.  The  Space  between  the  Ends,  the  Su- 
Floor  below  is  an  open  Walk,  except  preme  Court  is  ordinarily  held." 
two  Jails  and  the  Jailor's  Apart-  William  Smith.  The  History  of  the 
ments.  The  Cellar  underneath  is  a  Province  of  New-York.  London, 
Dungeon,   and  the   Garret  above   a  1757.    P.  194. 


68       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

as  soon  as  may  be  but  the  manner  of  doing  thereof  we  humbly 
Refer  to  the  Consideration  of  this  Board.^ 

Its  report  being  at  once  approved,  the  committee  was 
ordered  to  "Employ  Workmen  and  Purchase  Materialls 
for  fitting  up  a  Convenient  Room  or  Chamber,"  as  rec- 
ommended, "for  Containing  the  said  Library  with  Con- 
venient Shelves  and  Desks  Nessessary  thereunto."^ 

On  July  20th  Governor  Montgomerie  wrote  briefly 
again  to  Secretary  Humphreys  of  the  Society,  renewing 
appreciation  and  assurances  that  the  Corporation  would 
treat  the  gift  with  "great  Care."^  Two  days  later  the 
Common  Council,  after  ordering  a  receipt  to  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Vesey— still  rector  of  Trinity  Church,  and  since 
1714  the  S.  P.  G.  commissary  for  New  York— for  the 
cases  of  books,  and  directing  the  same  committee  to  have 
a  catalogue  made  and  to  have  the  books  cleaned  and  put 
into  the  "Library  Room,"  requested  Recorder  Harison 
to  "prepare  the  Draft  of  a  letter  of  thanks  &c, . . .  then  to 
he  fair  drawn,  signed  by  the  Mayor,"  ^  and  sent  abroad. 
This  epistle,  of  the  same  date,  informed  the  Society  that 
there  had  been  "furnished  and  Compleated  an  handsome 
large  Room  for  the  Reception  of  them  and  a  much 
greater  Number  whenever  we  shall  be  so  happy  to  see 
any  Addition  made  to  this  their  Noble  Benefaction"!^ 
In  conclusion  they  said:  "The  Approaching  session  of 
Assembly  Encourages  us  to  hope  that  we  shall  be  En- 
abled to  take  all  proper  Measures  for  the  Preservation 
of  this  Library,  and  the  Keeping  it  in  such  Manner  as 
may  best  Answer  the  Intention  of  the  Donors,  in  all 
which  worthy  purposes  we  have  already  received  (and 

*  Common  Council  Minutes,  IV,  13.  *  Common  Council  Minutes,  IV,  17. 

^Ibid.,  13.  '^Ibid.,  17-18. 

^  S.  P.  G.  Letter  Book   (copies), 
vol.  XXIII  A,  no.  11,  p.  77. 


THE  CORPORATION  LIBRARY  69 

have  further  Assurances  of)  his  Excellencys  Patronage 
and  Encouragement." 

Nevertheless,  Governor  Montgomerie  seems  never 
to  have  formally  recommended  that  the  assembly  should 
confirm  the  Library  by  statute,  nor  did  that  body  ever 
carry  out  its  intention,  expressed  June  27, 1729,  "to  pass 
an  Act  for  the  due  preservation  of  the  Books  when 
here."^  These  particulars  have  been  given  to  show  that 
the  legislature  took  no  active  part  in  the  establishment  of 
the  first  Public  Library  in  New  York  city;  that  in  this 
important  event  "home  rule"  was  not  questioned.  And 
further,  inasmuch  as  the  Corporation  met  all  the  con- 
tingent costs  of  the  new  enterprise,— amounting  alto- 
gether to  fully  £85,^  a  very  respectable  sum  for  that 
day,  especially  in  view  of  the  really  small  size  of  the  col- 
lection,—it  was  only  natural  that  the  institution  should 
come  to  be  called  the  Corporation  Library— that  is  to 
say,  controlled  by  the  Corporation  of  the  city,  technically 
termed  "The  Mayor,  Aldermen  and  Commonalty  of  the 
City  of  New  York." 

The  appointment  of  a  librarian  finds  no  mention  in 
the  minutes  of  the  Common  Council  for  some  years.  In 
several  histories  of  New  York  city  it  is  asserted  that  the 
Rev.  John  Sharpe,  "still  living,"  was  put  in  charge,  but 
"being  an  aged  man  did  not  long  survive  his  appoint- 
ment."^ Even  were  he  then  living,— which  does  not 
seem  probable,  from  the  statement  to  Governor  Burnet 
already  quoted, — he  would  have  been  only  just  fifty 
years  of  age.  This  tradition  is  perhaps  based  on  the 
probable  union  of  the  old  Sharpe  collections  with  the 

^Journal  of  .  .  .  General  Assem-  453,  480;  V,  8,  55,  299.    A  pound  in 

hly,  I,  602.  New  York  currency  equaled  $2.50. 

*  Common    Council    Minutes,    IV,  '  E.  a.,  see  p.  6. 
16,  25,  61,  63,  145,  304,  348,  352,  407, 


70       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

newly  started  Public  Library,  thus  at  last  identifying  his 
name  with  the  object  so  long  his  heart's  desire.  But 
there  can  be  found  no  evidence  to  prove  that  he  had  ever 
returned  to  America,  while  there  is  evidence  that  points 
to  his  having  died  in  London  prior  to  1723/  One  might 
think  that  Mrs.  Martha  J.  Lamb,  the  historian,  not 
merely  as  a  careful  investigator  would  have  discovered 
the  person  first  named  as  "Library  Keeper,"  but  would 
have  been  only  too  ready  to  publish  his  name,  which  was 
— Alexander  Lamb. 

This  individual,  of  whom  very  little  is  known  save 
that  he  later  served  on  the  city  watch,  began  in  Novem- 
ber, 1734,  a  term  of  eight  years  as  "Keeper  of  the  Li- 
brary," at  a  salary  of  £3  ($7.50)  per  annum  till  raised 
to  £4  ($10)  in  1737.'  What  his  duties  were,  to  merit 
this  not  excessive  allowance,  we  do  not  know;  but 
doubtless,  to  judge  from  later  regulations,  he  was  re- 
quired, besides  keeping  the  room  and  shelves  in  order,  to 
be  present  in  the  "Library  Room"  for  a  short  time  once 
or  twice  a  week  to  give  out  or  to  receive  books.  As  the 
very  title  implies,  however,  one  did  not  need  to  be  a  man 
of  great  literary  intelligence  simply  to  be  a  "Keeper." 

Before  Mr.  Lamb's  appointment,  the  Rev.  Richard 
Charlton,  assistant  at  Trinity  Church,  had  in  June,  1733, 
been  granted  by  the  Common  Council  "Liberty  to  make 
A  Key  to  the  Library  of  this  City  for  his  own  use,  and 
none  Others,  he  promising  to  make  a  Catalogue  of  the 
Said  Library,  and  properly  to  place  the  Books  therein, 
thereby  to  Render  the  same  more  Easy  to  be  found  and 
more  usefuU,  he  also  promising  not  to  suffer  any  Books 
whatsoever  to  be  taken  from  thence  without  the  direction 

*  See  p.  60.  304,  305,  348,  407,  453,  480;  V,  8,  55, 

^  Common    Council    Mimites,    IV,      83,  299. 


/;/^/ /^(t-A ,^**^    ^ft/o  A^a-  y^^^^afy  ^2*^  ify^?^yjei^}ny  /^^/^a,^^  Q'^r/O 
i>^  /•^/^^^//•-  M  0^,^a//ej>  /Sm^^    -QV/Q  V^-»  /^  ^d-M*  /m^^^/^ 


■y 


Reduced  facsimile  of  letter  from  Common  Council,  preserved 
in  S.  P.  G.  archives,  London,    See  p.  66. 


7^       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

and  Licence  of  this  Corporation."^  There  has  survived 
no  copy  of  this  catalogue  (if  it  was  ever  printed),  nor 
any  evidence  to  prove  that  it  was  actually  prepared. 
Previous  to  this  entry  the  only  reference  to  the  subject 
occurs  under  date  of  July  13,  1732,  when  one  Cornelius 
Lodge,  a  whilom  city  collector  and  surveyor,  was  ordered 
paid  £5  "for  attending  and  Cleaning  the  Books  in  the 
Library."^  This  ambiguous  passage  may  be  taken  to 
mean  that  he  was  its  first  though  transient  custodian.  To 
how  large  an  extent  the  books  circulated  during  these 
early  years  there  is  no  means  of  telling.  But  that  they 
did  circulate  is  plain  enough  from  subsequent  calls  for 
missing  volumes. 

With  the  cessation  of  Mr.  Lamb's  ministrations  in  the 
Library  in  the  fall  of  1742,  his  not  over-tempting  office 
was  without  incumbent  for  a  season.  There  is  nothing  to 
indicate  that  any  additions  to  the  collection  had  been 
forthcoming,  while  in  the  dozen  years  of  its  existence  no 
doubt  the  more  alluring  of  the  worthy  Dr.  Millington's 
books  had  been  read,  if  not  re-read,  by  those  who  cared 
for  the  printed  page  at  all.  So  a  very  natural  languor 
fell  upon  the  still  youthful  institution. 

Suddenly  in  the  year  1745  a  stir  was  felt.  On  April 
19th  the  Common  Council  was  presented  with  a  business- 
like memorial  from  an  enterprising  young  man,  James 
Parker,  a  former  apprentice  of  William  Bradford  and 
for  the  past  four  years  partner  of  Benjamin  Franklin 
under  the  terms  of  a  six-year  agreement,  "for  the  Carry- 
ing on  the  Business  of  Printing  in  the  City  of  New- 
York."  ^    It  would  seem  that  Franklin  must  have  been 

^Common  Council  Minutes, TV ilM.  the  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  for  May,  1902 

^Ihid.,  IV,  145.  (as  quoted  by  Worthington  C.  Ford 

'The   Articles    of   Indenture   are  from  the  original  MS.  in  the  pos- 

given  in  full  in  the  "Proceedings"  of  session  of  the  American  Philosoph- 


THE  CORPORATION  LIBRARY  73 

fully  cognizant  of  this  new  venture,  if  indeed  he  had  not 
urged  it  upon  his  partner,  as  would  not  be  at  all  improb- 
able. Unfortunately,  however,  their  available  corre- 
spondence begins  in  September,  1747,  after  Parker  had 
given  up  all  hope  of  success  with  the  Library.^  The 
preamble  of  his  petition  reads  as  follows: 

Whereas  the  Corporation  is  possessed  of  a  Valuable  Library 
which  May  be  of  very  Great  Use  And  Service  to  the  Inhabitants 
of  the  Province,  but  More  Especially  to  those  of  the  City,  if  a 
Library  keeper  was  Appointed  Under  proper  Regulations,  the 
want  of  which  at  present  Not  only  deprives  Many  persons  of  the 
Use  of  the  Said  Books,  But  Subjects  the  Books  to  be  hurt  Or 
Destroyed  by  the  Dust  and  paper  Worm,  Wherefore  James 
Parker  Printer  for  this  Government  Humbly  proposes  to  Take 
the  Care  And  Charge  of  the  Said  Library  As  Library  keeper 
during  the  pleasure  of  the  Corporation.^ 

His  proposed  "Terms  and  Regulations"  are  in  brief 
as  follows:  1st,  to  "Compleat  a  true  and  perfect  Cat- 
alogue .  .  .  and  Print  the  Same  in  a  handsome  Manner 
on  or  before  the  first  day  of  August  next,"  with  "his 
receipt  for  the  Books  therein" ;  2d,  that  he  be  empow- 
ered to  loan  books  at  sixpence  a  week,  under  certain 
limitations  and  penalties,  to  "persons  Resideing  within 
this  Government,"  such  "Hirers  Entring  into  a  Penalty 
in  Double  the  Value  of  Each  Book  with  Security  if  Re- 
quired" ;  3d,  that  the  extent  of  loans  be  between  a  week 
and  a  month,  no  person  to  have  more  than  three  books  at 
once;  4th,  that  members  of  the  Common  Council  "be 
Entituled  to  the  Loan  of  any  Book  Gratis  And  be  pre- 

ical  Society  of  Philadelphia).  Bos-  James  Parker  to  Benjamin  Frank- 
ton,  1903.     2d  series,  vol.  XVI,  pp.  lin,  1747-1770. 

186-189.  2  Common  Council  Minutes,  Y,  142. 
^Ibid.,  pp.  189-232,  Letters  from 


74       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

ferred  before  all  other  hirers,"  but  with  the  same  liabil- 
ities ;  5th,  that  the  new  keeper  give  "Attendance  at  the 
Library  at  a  fixed  time  once  a  Week  for  two  hours  in 
Order  to  Let  out  and  Receive  the  Books";  receive  for 
himself  the  "Proffitts";  keep  the  books  in  repair;  and 
replace  lost  copies,— all  "at  his  Own  Expence  without 
any  Charge  to  the  Corporation." 

The  last  consideration  expresses  aptly  the  attitude 
consistently  shown  by  the  city  fathers  toward  this  po- 
tentially valuable  asset  in  their  possession.  Beyond 
initial  charges  of  preparing  accommodations,  and  the 
keeper's  wages  for  a  few  years,  not  a  shilling  appears  to 
have  been  disbursed  toward  its  maintenance,  let  alone 
any  attempt  at  improvement  or  increase.  The  applica- 
tion of  Mr.  Parker  was  received  with  favor,  as  it  in- 
volved the  Corporation  in  no  expenditure  and  at  the 
same  time  relieved  it  of  all  responsibility.  Apparently 
with  little  question  or  discussion,  therefore,  the  Common 
Council,  Mayor  Stephen  Bayard  presiding,  agreed  to 
the  "Proposalls"  and  tersely  ordered  that  "the  Key  of 
the  Library  be  Delivered  to  the  Said  James  Parker."^ 

As  in  the  case  of  many  another  promised  work,  how- 
ever, to  undertake  is  one  thing  and  to  consummate,  an- 
other. Over  a  year  passed  before  the  catalogue  was 
advertised.  Mr.  Parker,  besides  his  public  printing,  con- 
ducted The  New-York  Weekly  Post-Boy,  established 
in  1743  as  the  third  city  newspaper.  The  first  evidence 
of  his  new  activity  appears  in  the  issue  of  August  19, 
1745,  in  a  notice  calling  for  the  return  of  some  ten  folio 
works,  naming  their  titles,^  "as  likewise  several  others," 


^  Common  Council  Minutes,  V,  143.       Hammond's    Paraphrase,    Newman's 

^"Howel's  History  of  the  World,       Concordance,      Wood's       Institutes, 

The  2d  Vol.  of  Clarendon's  History,      Cook's    Institutes,    Hardress's    Re- 


THE  CORPORATION  LIBRARY  75 

all  of  which  would  be  "thankfully  received,  and  no 
Questions  ask'd."  One  of  the  books,  it  is  interesting  to 
observe,  chanced  to  be  "The  2d  Vol.  of  Clarendon's  His- 
tory," which  would  almost  make  one  think  it  the  iden- 
tical copy  now  in  the  Society  Library,  were  it  not  for 
the  fact  that  the  latter  had  already  been  reposing  thirty- 
three  years  in  the  Trinity  Parish  Library,  while  the 
Millington  books  are  stated  to  have  borne  the  S.  P.  G. 
bookplate,  besides  their  former  owner's  name.  The  titles 
given  in  this  instance,  as  also  those  of  a  quarto  list  simi- 
larly printed  in  October,^  show  that  Dr.  Milhngton's 
library  had  not  been  as  closely  confined  to  dull  doctrinal 
works  as  the  Bray  and  Sharpe  collections.  And  yet 
Smith  the  historian  wrote  of  the  Corporation's  books  in 
1756:  "The  greatest  Part  of  them  are  upon  theological 
Subjects."  At  the  same  time  he  gives  their  number  as 
"a  1000  Volumes,"  adding:  "through  the  Carelessness  of 
the  Keepers  many  are  missing."  ^ 

Finally,  on  June  16,  1746,  Mr.  Parker,  having  "been 
at  the  Charge  and  Trouble  of  taking  and  printing  a 
Catalogue  of  those  Books,"  advertised  free  copies  "to 
any  Lovers  of  Reading,  that  will  send  and  desire  the 
same,"  thus  making  the  Millington  and  Sharpe  books 
again  available  to  the  public.  His  "Conditions  of  Loan" 
embraced  ''Four  Pence  Half -penny  per  Week,  for 
every  Book"  borrowed,  with  "Security  to  return  such 
Book  safe  and  unhurt,  at  the  End  of  one,  two,  three  or 
four  Weeks."  Only  one  book  could  be  taken  at  a  time, 
"'unless  more  than  one  Volume  of  a  Sort."    After  June 

ports,     Dalton's     Country     Justice,  Dryden's    Juvenal;    as    also    several 

Harris's  Lexicon,  and  Whitby's  Ad-  others   in   Octavo   and   Duodecimo.'* 

ditions."  The  Post-Boy,  Oct.  14,  1745. 

^  "Two  Volumes  of  an  Historical  ^  William  Smith.    History  of  New- 

and  Geographical  Dictionary,  Ty-  York.  London,  1757.  Pp.  194-195. 
son's    Anatomy    of    a    Pigmie,    and 


76       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

24th  "due  Attendance"  was  announced  to  be  given  "at 
said  Library  Room,  every  Tuesday  at  4  o' Clock  in  the 
Afternoon." 

In  January,  1747,  the  same  journal,  its  name  slightly 
altered  to  The  New-York  Gazette,  Revived  in  the 
Weekly  Post-Boy,— ioT  old  William  Bradford  had  then 
retired,— thus  presented  the  possibilities  of  the  Library 
as  a  winter  attraction : 

As  several  Persons  have  signified  their  Desire  of  hiring  Books 
from  the  Library  belonging  to  the  Corporation  of  this  City; 
but  the  Time  of  Attendance  being  short,  and  the  cold  Weather 
rendering  it  uncomfortable,  they  neglect  it;  this  is  to  give 
Notice,  that  on  any  Person's  signifying  a  Day  before-hand  what 
Book  they  would  have,  they  may  at  any  Time  have  such  Book 
of  the  Printer  hereof,  they  giving  the  usual  Security  for  the 
same.    Catalogues  to  be  had  for  sending  for.^ 

Notwithstanding  this  very  earnest  endeavor  to  renew 
interest  in  the  palsied  Corporation  Library,  it  seems  to 
have  listlessly  settled  once  more  into  inanition.  Again 
it  cannot  be  told  when  Captain  Parker^ — brave  enough 
in  the  face  of  human  foes — was  forced  to  yield  to  the 
deadly  bayonet  of  atrophy,  due  both  to  the  staleness  of 
the  unimproved  collection  and  to  the  still  prevalent 
literary  indifference. 

This  next  period  of  prostration,  however,  came  sooner 
to  an  end,  with  the  founding,  in  1754,  of  the  New  York 
Society  Library,  whose  history  the  present  work  has 
been  undertaken  to  set  forth.  The  conditions  that  led  to 
its  establishment  and  the  circumstances  of  its  origin  will 
therefore  fittingly  appear  later  on.    But  it  is  proper  to 

*  No  copy  is  known  to  exist.  Hildeburn.  Sketches  of  Printers  and 

^  For  further  particulars  concern-      Printing    in    Colonial    New     York. 
ing   James    Parker    see   Charles    R.       New  York,  1895.    P.  34  et  seq. 


THE  CORPORATION  LIBRARY  77 

give  here  the  terms  under  which  the  two  institutions 
joined  forces.  Their  resulting  unique  association  for  so 
many  years,  coupled  with  the  fact  that  the  light  of  each 
was  extinguished  in  the  storm  of  the  Revolution,  has 
very  natiu-ally  developed  belief  that  the  Society  Library 
was  the  successor  to  the  older  Corporation  Library.  In 
a  sense  it  was,  but  not  to  the  extent  of  the  latter's  identity 
being  wholly  merged  into  that  of  the  Society  Library, 
as  will  now  appear. 

On  September  11, 1754,  at  a  meeting  of  the  first  board 
of  Trustees  of  the  new  institution,  a  set  of  "Proposals'* 
was  drafted,  whose  preamble  and  resolutions  read  as  fol- 
lows: ''Whereas  the  Corporation-Library  hath  for  some 
years  past  been  shut  up,  &  the  Books  contained  in  it  be- 
come of  little  or  no  advantage  to  the  Public;  that  the 
same  may  hereafter  be  improved  &  found  beneficial  to 
the  Community,  Resolved/'  1st,  that  the  room  in  the 
City  Hall  containing  that  neglected  collection  "be  ap- 
propriated to  the  Trustees  of  this  Library  for  the  use  of 
the  same" ;  2d,  that  such  of  the  former's  books  deemed 
"most  fit  ...  be  joined  to  the  same,"  the  Society  Li- 
brary to  be  "accountable  to  the  Corporation  for  the  same 
whenever  demanded";  3d,  that  books  judged  "of  no 
Service  &  scarce  ever  read"  be  "put  up  into  Boxes  to  be 
made  for  that  purpose  and  secured,"  to  make  room  for 
the  fresh  consignment  expected  from  abroad;  4th,  that 
the  Common  Council  appoint  a  person  to  act  with  a 
Trustee  in  taking  an  inventory  of  the  old  store;  and  5th, 
that  books  of  the  Corporation  Library  entrusted  to  the 
Society  Library  "be  improved  for  the  public  advantage 
in  like  manner"  as  the  latter's,  "subject  in  all  respects  to 
the  same  Rules  and  Regulations." 

These  proposals  were  ordered  submitted  to  the  city 


78       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

authorities  by  a  committee  comprising  the  Hon.  John 
Watts,  William  Livingston  and  WilHam  Peartree 
Smith.  Unfortunately  we  are  denied  the  satisfaction  of 
knowing  just  how  the  response  was  phrased,  for  there  is 
a  gap  of  more  than  two  months  in  the  Common  Council 
minutes  at  this  very  interesting  juncture.  Nor  is  there 
any  allusion  in  the  Society  Library  records  to  such  reply ; 
but,  inasmuch  as  Mayor  Holland  and  other  members 
of  the  Corporation  had  subscribed  to  the  new  project, 
their  consent  was  no  doubt  assured  in  advance.  Re- 
liable evidence  of  a  favorable  action,  however,  is  found 
in  The  New-York  Mercury  for  October  21st,  wherein 
"the  Proprietors  of  the  New- York  Society  Library"  are 
notified  that  its  lately  imported  books  had  been  "placed, 
for  the  present,  by  Leave  of  the  Corporation,  in  their 
Library  Room  in  the  City-Hall,"  and  that  "constant  At- 
tendance" would  be  given  "on  Tuesdays  and  Fridays,^ 
from  the  hours  of  Ten  to  Twelve."  Attached  to  this 
notice  is  a  schedule  of  "The  Terms  for  the  Loan  of 
Books,"  but,  as  they  were  established  by  the  Trustees  of 
the  Society  Library,  their  consideration  will  properly  be 
deferred.^ 

While  the  new  Subscription  Library  is  winning  ap- 
plause and  support,  nothing  is  heard  of  the  little  old  col- 
lection for  some  nine  years.  But  that  absorption  had 
not  taken  place,  and  that  the  Common  Council  was  bent 
on  maintaining  differentiation  between  the  two  institu- 
tions, is  apparent  from  several  entries  in  the  city  records. 
For  instance  in  August,  1763,  a  warrant  was  issued  to 
pay  Isaac  Stoutenburgh,  a  public  overseer,  for  "the  re- 
moveing  of  the  Citys  arms.  Library  &c  from  the  City 
Hall."^    Also  the  same  official  was  paid  regularly  for 

^  See  p.  156.  '  Common  Council  Minutes,  VI,  334. 


THE  CORPORATION  LIBRARY  79 

his  "Storage  of  the  Citys  arms  PubUck  Library  &c,"^ 
while  the  City  Hall  was  undergoing  repairs.  The  work 
proceeded  slowly,  for  not  until  May,  1765,  was  the  old 
"Library  Room"  ordered  to  be  finished  "in  the  most 
plain  and  Cheap  manner  that  Can  be."^ 

At  last,  by  August,  1765,  the  books  would  seem  to 
have  been  restored  to  the  shelves,  for  on  the  23d  the 
Common  Council  voted,  "upon  application  of  Alderman 
Hicks,"  then  a  Trustee  of  the  Society  Library,  "that 
Thomas  Jackson  be  appointed  ...  to  take  Charge  of 
the  Corporation  Library,  and  that  he  attend  at  the  Li- 
brary Room  in  the  City  Hall  on  Mondays  and  Thurs- 
days, from  half  after  Eleven  oClock  in  the  morning 
until  one,  to  let  out  the  Books  and  that  he  keep  an  exact 
account  of  the  Income  thereof."^  He  was  also  re- 
quested to  have  a  new  catalogue  prepared  and  printed, 
while  a  stipend  of  <£4  ($10)  a  year  was  accorded  him 
"for  his  Trouble."  At  the  same  time  the  rate  of  loans 
was  appointed  to  be  two  shillings  a  month  for  a  folio, 
one  shilling  for  a  quarto,  and  sixpence  for  an  octavo 
"or  Lesser  Volume."  Overdue  books  entailed  a  fine  of 
six,  four,  or  two  pence  a  day,  according  to  size. 

Continuance  of  a  close  relationship  between  the  two 
institutions  is  made  very  plain  in  this  advertisement  in 
the  New-York  Gazette;  or  the  Weekly  Post-Boy,^  for 
five  numbers,  beginning  September  19,  1765: 

^  Ibid.,  376,  450.  Augustus    Van    Cortlandt,    is    pre- 

^  Ibid.,  418.  served  in  the  Society  Library. 

'  Ibid.,  427.    A  neatly  written  copy  *  Then  printed  by  John  Holt,  **late 

of  this  minute,  signed  by  City  Clerk  partner  with  James  Parker." 


80       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 


NEW-YORK  LIBRARY. 

THIS  is  to  give  notice,  that  the  worshipful  corporation  of 
the  city  of  New- York,  have  committed  the  care  of  their  Li- 
brary, of  near  2000  volumes,  (among  which  are  a  great  many 
very  valuable,  antient,  curious,  and  rare  books,)  to  Mr.  Jackson, 
Master  of  the  Academy  in  the  Exchange,  who  will  soon  publish 
a  catalogue,^  with  the  conditions  of  lending  them  out.  The 
trustees  of  the  Society-Library  have  also  appointed  him  keeper 
of  their  Library,  consisting  of  a  large  weU  chosen  collection  of 
the  most  useful  modern  books,  with  a  considerable  late  addition, 
of  which  a  catalogue  will  be  speedily  published,  that  the  sub- 
scribers may  stitch  in  with  their  former  catalogues.  A  share  in 
this  Library  is  now  worth  10  1.  10  s.  and  is  transferable  by  the 
subscribers. 

Both  Libraries  are  kept  in  a  large  commodious  room,  fitted 
up  for  the  purpose,  at  the  City-Hall,  where  constant  attendance 
will  be  given  on  Mondays  and  Thursdays,  from  half  past  eleven 
to  one  o'clock. 

As  a  sense  of  the  universal  benefit  of  good  reading,  and  of  the 
great  want  of  opportunity  of  having  that  otherwise  supplied, 
in  this  place,  has  prompted  the  corporation,  and  the  gentlemen 
of  the  Society,  to  take  this  method  for  encouraging  it;  it  is 
hoped  great  numbers  will  improve  this  advantage,  which  it  is 
not  doubted,  Mr.  Jackson  will  exert  himself  all  he  can  to  pro- 
mote, at  the  fixed  hours  of  attendance ;  and  also  will  assist,  par- 
ticularly young  gentlemen,  at  such  other  convenient  hours,  as 
upon  application  to  him,  they  and  he  shall  agree  upon. 

The  announcement  concludes  with  a  request  for  the  re- 
turn of  books  borrowed  from  both  Libraries,  and  with  a 
quotation  from  Cicero  on  "Good  Reading." 

This  renewed  attempt  to  arouse  interest  in  books  was 
made  coincidentally  with  the  Stamp  Act  agitation, 
which  was  no  tame  affair  in  New  York.     During  the 

^  No  copy  is  known  to  be  extant. 


THE  CORPORATION  LIBRARY  81 

stirring  decade  that  ensued,  the  people  evidently  were 
moved  to  read  as  well  as  to  make  history,  for  in  Decem- 
ber, 1771,  there  suddenly  sprang  into  being  another 
Subscription  Library,  denominated  the  Union  Library 
Society.  Though  its  brief  career  is  recounted  in  a  later 
section,  it  is  pertinent  to  say  here  that  the  Common 
Council  granted  the  new  applicants  leave  to  place  their 
collection  in  "the  Eastermost  part  of  the  Room"  con- 
taining the  books  of  the  New  York  Society  Library/ 

This  was  in  April,  1774.  There  were  now  three  dis- 
tinct collections  of  books  in  the  old  Library  Room  in  the 
City  Hall.  Still  a  fourth  was  added  in  May,  1776, 
when  the  Library  of  King's  College  was  deposited  there 
on  that  institution's  being  turned  into  a  military  hospital 
by  the  "Rebels."  Thus  indeed  may  the  city's  whole 
hope  of  letters  be  likened  to  the  marketer  with  all  his 
eggs  in  one  basket;  and,  alas,  the  simile  continues  to 
the  disastrous  crash,  with  but  a  small  portion  rescued 
from  the  sorry  downfall. 

The  sad  story  as  told  by  eye-witnesses  has  often  been 
repeated  in  print.  Of  the  old  Corporation  Library,  the 
venerable  dean  of  that  little  assemblage  of  books,  the 
"Digest"  of  the  S.  P.  G.  records  says:  "Sufficient  se- 
curity for  peaceful  times,  it  availed  not  during  the 
Revolutionary  War."^  And  in  the  manuscript  journal 
of  the  Society  appears  this  abstract  of  a  letter  from  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Charles  Inglis,  rector  of  Trinity  Church,  dated 
at  New  York,  May  1,  1778:^ 

A  library  left  to  the  Society  in  trust  by  the  Rev^  D^  Millington 
in  the  year  1728,  for  the  use  of  their  Missionaries,  and  the  li- 

^  Common  Council  Mirmtes,  VIII,      of  the  S.  P.  G.,  1701-1892.    London, 
24-25.  1893.     P.  798. 

^Classified  Digest  of  the  Records  ^  This     letter     cannot    be     found 

among  the  S.  P.  G.  papers. 


82       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

brary  and  philosophical  apparatus  belonging  to  the  College, 
together  with  a  large  Subscription  Library,  belonging  to  the  In- 
habitants, were,  after  the  King's  Troops  took  possession  of  the 
City,  plundered,  sold,  and  dispersed  by  our  soldiers,  before  a 
discovery  was  made.  As  soon  as  the  affair  came  to  D^  Inglis's 
knowle[d]ge,  he  applied  for  redress,  a  proclaimation  was  issued 
for  returning  the  books,  but  not  a  tenth  part  of  them,  and  those 
the  least  valuable,  and  the  sets  broken,  were  returned.  He  hath 
collected  into  one  place,  and  sorted  those  that  belonged  to  the 
several  Libraries,  and  with  the  consent  of  the  Mayor  of  the  City, 
hath  taken  the  Millington  Library  into  his  own  possession. 
Their  amount  is  about  80  volumes  out  of  1000;  and  the  most 
valuable  of  these  are  a  few  that  he  had  borrowed  before  the 
troubles,  and  had  preserved  with  his  own  books.  He  begs  to 
know  the  Society's  determination  respecting  these  books — 
whether  they  shall  be  left  in  their  former  state,  or  remain  in  his 
possession,  or  be  given  to  Trinity  Church,  the  Library  of  which 
was  consumed  by  the  Fire  in  Sept^  1776. 

The  committee  on  this  communication  was  "Agreed 
in  opinion  that  .  .  .  the  remains  of  the  Millington  Li- 
brary be  left  in  the  custody  of  D^  Inglis";  whereupon 
the  Society  ''Resolved  to  agree  with  the  Committee." 

Nothing  further  can  be  stated  positively  concerning 
the  little  remnant  of  the  collection.  When  the  success 
of  the  American  cause  became  certain,  Dr.  Inglis  set  sail 
for  Nova  Scotia,  of  which  British  province  he  was  not 
long  afterward  consecrated  first  Anglican  bishop.  His 
private  library,  which  may  still  have  included  these  sur- 
viving volumes,  was  left  to  his  son  John,  third  bishop  of 
the  same  diocese.  At  the  latter's  death  his  books  were 
scattered,  most  of  them  being  taken  to  England  and 
there  sold.  Some  were  given  to  King's  College  at 
Windsor,  Nova  Scotia,  but  its  librarian  has  found  no 
books  with  the  name  of  Dr.  Millington  inscribed  therein. 
So,  in  the  absence  of  any  evidence  to  the  contrary,  may 


THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY  83 

we  not  fancy  a  book  or  two  of  the  long-defunct  Cor- 
poration Library  back  again  in  England,  perchance 
within  sound  once  more  of  the  old  vesper  bell,  given  to 
his  beloved  church  at  Stoke  Newington  by  its  pious 
rector,  Dr.  John  Millington. 


i.  The  New  York  Society  Library,  founded  in  17 5 A 

Inasmuch  as  succeeding  chapters  are  devoted  to  set- 
ing  forth  the  history  of  the  Society  Library,  it  is  unnec- 
essary to  give  attention  to  this  institution  here,  further 
than  to  indicate  its  proper  place  in  the  chronological  se- 
ries. It  is  well  to  state,  however,  that  the  Society  Li- 
brary differed  radically  in  its  foundation  from  previous 
Library  movements  in  New  York.  It  owed  existence 
to  no  gift  of  individual,  or  of  associate  body,  but  was 
the  spontaneous  outgrowth  of  a  rather  general  desire 
for  improvement.  It  was  a  Subscription  Library,  pub- 
lic in  the  sense  that  any  person  was  welcome  to  member- 
ship at  a  uniform  rate,  and  its  books  soon  circulated 
through  a  fair  proportion  of  the  cultivated  citizens. 

From  what  has  gone  before,  the  claim  cannot  be  sub- 
stantiated that  the  Society  Library,  in  its  stewardship 
of  the  old  Corporation  Library,  actually  dates  from 
1730,— thus  holding  the  distinction  of  being  the  oldest^ 
Public  Library  in  the  country,— or  still  less  truthfully 
from  1713,  when  the  Sharpe  books,  now  in  its  posses- 
sion, were  given  to  found  a  "Publick"  Library.  Only 
by  way  of  analogy,  in  consequence  of  its  close  associa- 
tion with  these  older  collections,  may  the  Society  Li- 

*The  term  "oldest"  is  not  used  at  all  in  the  sense  of  earliest. 


84       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

brary— in  the  sense  in  which  the  Father  of  Waters,  in 
conjunction  with  its  tributary,  the  Missouri,  is  the  long- 
est river  in  the  world— be  termed  the  oldest  Public 
Library  in  the  United  States. 


6.  The  Library  of  King's  College,  1757-1776^ 

As  elsewhere  noted,  the  founders  of  the  Society  Library 
in  1754  had  advanced  as  a  motive  for  its  establishment 
the  hope  that  a  Public  Library  "may  be  also  advan- 
tageous to  our  intended  College."^  This  not  over-con- 
jfident  expectation  was  probably  justified,  for  not  until 
1760  was  King's  College  housed  in  a  building  of  its 
own.  Its  little  faculty,  therefore,  as  also  its  scarcely 
larger  body  of  students,  no  doubt  made  glad  use  of  the 
steadily  growing  public  collection  in  the  City  Hall. 

Naturally,  however,  the  need  of  a  special  reference 
Library  was  early  felt  by  the  College  authorities.  But 
there  were  no  funds  to  warrant  expenditure  for  books, 
so  it  was  by  gift  or  bequest  alone  that  a  beginning  must 
be  made.  Nor  had  their  patience  long  to  wait.  Like 
the  old  Corporation  Library,  its  origin  was  due  to  a  leg- 
acy. By  the  will  of  the  Hon.  Joseph  Murray,  one  of  its 
Governors,  as  also  a  member  of  the  first  board  of  Trus- 
tees of  the  Society  Library,  who  died  in  April,  1757, 
there  was  devised  to  "the  Governors  of  the  College  of 

^Sketches  of  this  early  coUection  New    York,    1904.      P.    427  et  seq. 

have  appeared  in  print  in  the  several  Material    in    the    present    study    is 

histories    of    Columbia    College,   the  based,  however,  on  original  sources, 

latest  being  in  an  article  on  "The  some  of  which  have  been  unavailable 

Library"    by    Librarian    James    H.  hitherto. 

Canfield,    LL.D.,   in   A    History    of  ^  See  pp.  136,  146. 
Columbia      University,      1754-1904' 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  KING'S  COLLEGE  85 

the  Province  of  New  York,  by  whatever  name  they  are 
called,"  the  residue  of  his  estate,  including  a  fine  li- 
brary/ The  books  were  doubtless  handed  over  with 
despatch,  to  judge  from  a  notice  inserted  in  the  Mercury 
ioT  May  16th,  calling  for  the  immediate  return  of  any 
books  borrowed  from  the  testator  or  his  "late  lady." 


Local  jom-nals  eulogized  this  early  benefactor  of  the 
College  in  highest  terms.  The  Gazette  of  May  2d  re- 
counted how,  "during  the  long  and  extensive  Course  of 
his  Practice,"  Mr.  Murray  had  "approved  himself  a 
Gentleman  of  the   strictest   Integrity,   Fidelity,   and 


^  Abstract  of  the  will  of  the  Hon. 
Joseph  Murray,  Esq.  (Liber  20,  p. 
233,  of  "Wnis  in  the  New  York  Sur- 
rogate's   Office"),    printed    in    The 


Collections  of  the  New  York  His- 
torical Society  for  the  Year  1896, 
New  York,  1897.    Pp.  165-166. 


86       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

Honour,"  and  that  "by  Principle,  he  was  a  steady  and 
hearty  Friend  to  the  National  Constitution,  both  of 
Church  and  State,  and  frequent  in  his  Attendance  on 
the  publick  Offices  and  Ordinances  of  Religion."  The 
Mercury  of  the  same  date  said  of  him : 

On  Thursday  last  departed  this  Life,  in  the  63d  Year  of  his 
Age,  the  Honourable  Joseph  Murray,  Esq;  one  of  his  Maj- 
esty's Council  for  the  Province  of  New- York,  and  the  most  con- 
siderable Lawyer  here  in  his  Time;  by  which  Profession  he  ac- 
quired a  large  Fortune,  in  such  a  Manner  as  justly  in  titled  him 
to  the  Character  of  an  honest,  upright,  judicious  Man:  As  a 
Counsellor,  he  gave  his  Opinion  and  Advice  according  to  the 
Dictates  of  his  own  Reason,  without  Favour  or  Affection;  it 
was  the  Cause  and  not  the  Person  that  directed  his  Judgment ; 
and  neither  Threats  [n]or  Frowns  could  make  him  deviate  from 
what  he  thought  right :  His  Purse  was  always  open  to  the  true 
Objects  of  Charity:  He  was  an  excellent  Husband,  a  kind  Mas- 
ter, and  a  true  Friend ;  a  most  regular  Man  in  all  his  Conduct ; 
and  those  Lines  in  the  XVth  Psalm,  might  justly  be  applied  to 
him.   .   .   . 

It  seems  probable  that  this  beginning  of  the  College 
Library  was  deposited  temporarily  in  the  Trinity  char- 
ity school  building,  for,  according  to  advertisements  in 
the  newspapers,  President  Johnson  gave  regular  in- 
struction to  his  classes  "at  the  Vestry  Room  in  the 
School-House,  near  the  English  Church."^  As  an  as- 
sistant minister  of  Old  Trinity,  Dr.  Johnson  was  also 
entitled  to  unrestricted  use  of  the  Parish  Library,  so 
that  in  a  sense  all  the  literary  resources  of  the  city— 
such  as  they  were — had  been  placed  at  the  disposal  of 
the  young  College. 

The  next  acquisition  was  likewise  a  bequest,  in  most 

^The  New   York  Gazette;  or,  the  Weekly  Post-Boy,  July  1,  1754. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  KING'S  COLLEGE  87 

respects  a  counterpart  of  the  Millington  foundation  of 
the  Corporation  Library.  According  to  printed  records 
of  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  for 
the  year  ending  in  February,  1759,  it  appears  that 

the  Rev.  Dr.  Bristowe,  a  worthy  Member  of  the  Society  lately 
deceased,  having  by  his  last  Will,  bequeathed  his  Library  of  near 
1500  Volumes  to  the  Society  to  be  sent  to  the  College  of  New 
York,  of  which  Dr.  Johnson  is  President,  or  to  such  other  Place 
or  Places  as  the  Society  should  direct,  the  Society  hath  directed 
those  Books  to  be  sent  and  placed  in  this  College  of  New  York, 
in  Approbation  of  the  generous  Donor's  Design.^ 

The  Rev.  Duncombe  Bristowe,  D.D.,  a  graduate  of 
Brasenose  College,  Oxford,  had  been,  at  the  time  of  his 
death  in  June,  1758,  rector  of  All  Hallows,  Staining 
within  Aldgate,  London,  for  thirty  years.  The  recipient 
of  various  university  honors,  he  also  held  a  supplemen- 
tary "college  living"  at  Selborne  in  Hampshire.  Public 
announcement  of  this  bequest— "together  with  Sixty 
Pounds  sterling,  to  be  paid  after  his  Widow's  decease" 
— was  made  at  New  York  in  Weyman's  Gazette  for 
Jime  25, 1759. 

For  some  time,  however,  it  looked  as  if  a  notice  of  the 
benefaction  was  all  the  College  would  receive.  In  a  let- 
ter dated  February  16,  1760,  the  Rev.  Henry  Barclay, 
second  rector  of  Trinity  Church,  in  behalf  of  the  Gov- 
ernors thanked  the  Venerable  Society  "for  their  resolu- 
tion to  send  us  the  Library,  bequeathed  by  the  late 
worthy  D^  Bristow."^    He  says  further:  "The  Library 

^An  Abstract  of  the  Proceedings  ^  S.  P.  G.  Letter  Book,  vol.  II  B 

of  the  Society.   London,  1759.   P.  61.        (1759-1782),  pt.  i,  no.  44. 


88       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

Room  in  the  College  we  hope  will  be  in  readiness  to  re- 
ceive the  Books  by  Midsummer."  These  hopes  were  no 
doubt  realized,  so  far  as  the  Murray  books  were  con- 
cerned, for  by  May  the  officers  and  students  "began  to 
Lodge  &  Diet"  in  the  new  building,  so  long  the  home 
of  the  College  on  Murray  street.  The  attractiveness  of 
the  spot  chosen,  then  lying  well  without  the  settled  part 
of  town,  in  full  view  of  the  Hudson,  is  attested  to  by 
an  English  visitor,  who  predicts  it  "will  be  the  most 
beautifully  situated  of  any  college  in  the  world."  ^ 

The  promised  collection  had  not  arrived  at  the  time  of 
the  annual  meeting  of  the  Governors  in  May,  1761.  In- 
stead, President  Johnson  read  to  the  board  a  letter 
"from  the  Rev^  Doctor  Bearcroft  in  which  he  desires 
some  directions  about  the  Liberary  of  Books  given  to 
this  Corporation  by  the  late  Rev^  Doctor  Bristow."  He 
was  thereupon  directed  to  ask  Dr.  Bearcroft  "to  deliver 
the  said  Liberary  to  M^  William  Neat  of  London  Mer- 
chant when  he  shall  chuse  to  call  for  them."  And 
Nathaniel  Marston,  an  influential  member,  was  re- 
quested to  notify  Mr.  Neat  "that  as  soon  as  there  is  a 
Peace  he  will  call  on  Doctor  Bearcroft  for  the  said 
Liberary  and  send  it  over  in  the  best  and  most  reason- 
able manner  he  can  and  to  Insure  it  when  shipt." 

Owing  to  a  continuance  of  war  and  for  other  reasons, 
the  books  had  not  come  by  March,  1763;  though  a  com- 
mittee on  "the  State  and  Circumstances  of  the  College," 
comprising  "M^  Chief  Justice  Pratt,  M^  Justice  Hors- 
manden,  the  Rev^  M^  Barclay,  Colli  De  Lancey  and  the 
Rev^  M^  Auchmuty  or  any  three  of  them,"  then  re- 

^  The     Rev.      Andrew     Burnaby,  the  Best  and  Most  Interesting  Voy- 

D.D.     Travels   through   the  Middle  ages  and  Travels  in  All  Parts  of  the 

Settlements  in  North  America.    Re-  World.     Edited  by  John  Pinkerton. 

printed  in  A   General  Collection  of  London,  1813.    P.  737. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  KING'S  COLLEGE  89 

ported  "a  considerable  Number  of  Books  in  the  College 
Library  (the  generous  Donation  of  the  late  Joseph 
Murray  Esq^)  and  a  very  large  Addition  soon  expected 
from  England,  the  Donation  of  Doctor  Bristow."  It 
was  thereupon  deemed  "high  time,  that  a  Librarian  be 
appointed  with  a  small  Salary,  and  that  he  be  furnished 
with  such  Rules  and  Directions  as  may  tend  to  the  pres- 
ervation of  the  Books  committed  to  his  Care,  and  best 
answer  the  purposes  for  which  they  were  bestowed."  Ac- 
cordingly Robert  Harpur,  "the  Mathematical  Teacher," 
became  first  incimibent  of  that  ofiice  at  £10  ($25)  a 
year.  He  was  further  ordered  to  "make  a  Catelogue  of 
the  Books  that  now  are  and  hereafter  may  belong  to  the 
Library  and  deliver  a  Copy  thereof  to  the  President  of 
the  College  and  another  Copy  to  the  Clerk  of  this  Cor- 
poration, and  also  that  he  be  accountable  for  the  said 
Books." 

Meanwhile,  in  November,  1762,  the  Governors  had 
authorized  "James  Jay  M.D.  a  gentleman  of  this  City 
Eminent  in  his  Profession,  the  Honourable  George 
Clarke  Esq^  Secretary  and  Robert  Charles  Esq^  Agent 
of  this  Province  and  Barlow  Trecothick  &  Moses 
Franks  Merch*^  of  London  and  each  of  them  by  himself 
our  Substitutes,  for  us  and  in  our  behalf  to  Solicit  and 
receive  the  Donations  and  Contributions  of  all  such  as 
shall  be  Generously  disposed  to  f  avoiu*  the  advancement 
of  Learning  &  Virtue  in  this  extensive  &  uncultivated 
part  of  the  World." 

In  the  course  of  the  address  presented  by  this  commis- 
sion to  the  English  authorities  of  church  and  state,  as  to 
the  universities,  mention  of  the  Library  is  made  in  out- 
lining the  progress  of  the  institution,  as  follows:  "Thus 
far  encouraged  a  neat  &  convenient  Edifice  is  erected, 


90       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

for  public  Schools  &  Lodgings,  a  small  Liberary,  with  a 
Mathematical  Apparatus  provided,  and  a  course  of 
Education  begun,  under  the  Direction  of  a  President  & 
two  Professors." 

In  response  to  this  memorial,  substantial  sums  of 
money  were  contributed  to  the  College,  and  its  Library 
received  certain  specific  gifts,  for  the  minutes  record  that 
"Sundry  Gentlemen  at  Oxford  gave  Books  whose  names 
are  in  them."  Indeed,  President  Nathaniel  F.  Moore 
enumerates  in  his  historical  sketch  "many  valuable  works 
given  by  the  Earl  of  Bute  and  other  individuals,  and 
from  the  University  of  Oxford,  a  copy  of  every  work 
printed  at  the  University  Press."  ^ 

Very  likely  the  commission  was  also  instructed  to 
hasten  the  shipment  of  the  Bristowe  books,  for  at  the 
May  meeting  of  1763  Mr.  Marston  read  a  letter  from 
the  Messrs.  Neat  &  Co.,  "acquainting  him  that  they  had 
Shipped  nine  Boxes  of  Books  the  Gift  of  the  late  Rev- 
erend Doctor  Bristow  to  the  College  which  the  Gover- 
nors have  received."  The  arrival  of  this  consignment  is 
chronicled  in  dignified  fashion  in  the  following  para- 
graph from  Weyman's  Gazette  of  May  16,  1763: 

With  Pleasure  we  can  inform  the  Public,  from  good  Authority, 
that  the  Governors  of  King's  College,  in  this  City,  have  received 
a  Donation  by  the  last  Vessels  from  London,  of  no  less  than 
Twelve  Hundred  Volums,  of  valuable,  well  chosen,  and  useful 
Books;  being  Part  of  the  Library  of  the  late  eminent  and 
worthy  Divine,  Doctor  BRISTOWE:  The  Remainder  of  his 
Library,  consisting  of  several  Hundred  Volums  more,  is  ex- 
pected every  Day.  This  generous  and  noble  Present,  must  af- 
ford   a    singular    Pleasure   to    every    Gentleman    of   Learning 

^  For  sources  of  this  statement  see       (Oxford  items),  and  for  Sept.  24th 
Holt's   Journal,    for   July   30,    1772       (London  notes). 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  KING'S  COLLEGE  91 

amongst  us,  and  to  all  that  have  the  Improvement  and  Well- 
being  of  the  rising  Generation  at  Heart:  And  which  with  the 
Library  of  the  late  Hon.  Joseph  Murray,  Esq;  (a  Gift  also  to 
the  College)  are  immediately  to  be  placed  in  the  College  Li- 
brary, for  the  Use  of  the  Students,  under  proper  Restrictions 
and  Regulations.  With  such  essential  Helps  to  Learning,  may 
we  not  flatter  ourselves  with  the  Prospect  of  soon  seeing  our 
Youth,  hitherto  destitute  of  a  Seminary  of  Learning,  vie  with 
our  Neighbours  in  the  Knowledge  and  Improvement  of  the 
Liberal  Arts  and  Sciences?  The  rising  Generation  will  now 
enjoy  a  Blessing  our  Fore-fathers  were  destitute  of,  and  reap 
those  valuable  Advantages  which  the  generous  Donors  had  in 
View,  by  bestowing  their  Libraries  on  an  Infant  College,  that 
has  been  honoured  and  promoted  by  the  Legislature,  several 
pubhck  spirited  Gentlemen  at  home  and  abroad,  and  which, 
every  Day,  becomes  more  and  more  deserving  the  Countenance, 
Protection,  and  Assistance  of  every  Person  of  Rank  and  Learn- 
ing amongst  us. 

It  presently  appearing,  however,  that  all  the  books 
had  not  been  sent,  after  waiting  over  a  year  the  board, 
in  October,  1764,  directed  Mr.  Marston  "to  write  to  M^ 
Neate  to  enquire  what  is  become  of  the  Remainder  of 
the  Library  left  to  the  College  by  Doctor  Bristow  and 
to  desire  him  to  Ship  them  as  soon  as  possible  upon  the 
best  and  most  reasonable  Terms  he  can." 

No  answer  having  apparently  been  elicited  as  the 
months  wore  away,  again,  in  December,  1765,  the  second 
President,  Dr.  Myles  Cooper,  and  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Auchmuty,  third  rector  of  Trinity  Church,  were  "de- 
sired to  write  to  Doctor  Burton  the  Society's  Secretary 
to  enquire  what  is  become  of  the  Remainder  of  Doctor 
Bristow's  Liberary  given  to  this  Corporation  and  that  he 
be  requested  to  put  them  into  the  Hands  of  M^  William 
Neate  in  order  to  be  sent  over  as  soon  as  conveniently 
may  be."     The  resulting  letter,  at  once  despatched  by 


92       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

these  gentlemen,  and  now  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the 
S.  P.  G.,  states  that  1000  volumes  had  been  received  of 
"M^  Neat  Mercht  in  London,"  and  requests  Dr.  Bur- 
ton, if  the  remaining  books  "are  still  in  the  Custody  of 
the  Society,"  to  "be  pleased  to  order  them  to  Mess^^  Neat 
&  Pecue  Merch*^,  who  are  desired  to  forward  them  by 
the  first  good  Opportunity." 


J^^2<i^i?^^z?^?^^  o^^ 


This  communication  evoked  at  least  a  reply,  which  in 
November,  1766,  President  Cooper  writes  he  "had  not 
the  pleasure  to  receive  before  the  latter  end  of  August, 
it  having  been  landed  at  some  distant  port."  With  ref- 
erence to  the  missing  books  he  says : 

I  likewise  am  much  obliged  to  you,  as  is  the  whole  Government 
of  the  College,  for  the  notice  you  take  of  D^  Auchmuty's  Letter 
and  mine,  concerning  the  Library  of  D^  Bristowe:  tho'  we  are 
sorry  to  find  so  small  a  prospect  of  recovering  such  a  consider- 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  KING'S  COLLEGE  93 

able  number  of  Books  as  were  left  in  England  when  the  former 
part  was  sent  us.  But  perhaps,  Sir,  it  may  be  of  some  Use  to  us, 
that  you  should  be  informed  that  y^  principal  remainder  of  the 
Books  was  said  to  be  in  the  possession  of  D^  Bearcroft's  Son, 
who  was  then  out  of  London ;  which  was  given  as  y?  Reason  why 
the  whole  could  not  be  sent  us  at  once.  Wherefore  [if]  it  would 
be  in  your  power,  and  not  attended  with  too  much  farther 
trouble,  we  should  beg  of  you  to  make  Enquiry  of  him;  and  I 
am  persuaded  y?  Application  would  not  be  ineffectual.^ 

From  still  a  third  letter,  similar  in  pm*port,  it  is  clear 
that  the  long-sought  volmnes  never  materialized,  for  in 
September,  1767,  Dr.  Cooper  again  thanked  the  secre- 
tary "for  the  Trouble  you  have  been  at,  in  a  fruitless  En- 
quiry after  the  Remainder  of  D^  Bristowe's  Library."^ 

Besides  these  important  gifts,  the  College  authorities 
had  enlarged  the  Library  by  incidental  piu'chases  of 
books  from  local  dealers,  Hugh  Gaine,  Garrat  Noel  and 
William  Weyman,  the  first  and  last  of  whom  were  also 
printers  and  newspaper  editors.  Mr.  Noel  on  one  occa- 
sion prior  to  1763  presented  "Romain's  Ed.  of  M.  Cal- 
lasio's  Hebr.  Concordance  4.  vol.  fol."  Another  donor 
named  in  the  Governors'  minutes  is  Bartholomew  Cran- 
nell,  a  former  city  marshal  and  for  a  long  time  overseer 
of  the  local  watch,  who  in  March,  1770,  bestowed  "sun- 
dry Books  to  be  added  to  the  College  Library." 

From  the  occupations  of  its  two  chief  benefactors,  the 
collection  partook  largely  of  a  professional  character, 
comprising  standard  works  in  law  and  theology,  with  the 
usual  proportion  of  history  and  the  classics,  and  a 
sprinkling  of  science  and  belles-lettres.  Its  exact  extent 
there  is  no  means  of  ascertaining,  for  no  "catelogue"  has 
survived.    It  may  reasonably  be  estimated  at  about  two 

'  8.  P.  O.  Letter  Book,  vol.  Ill  B,  pt.  ii,  no.  319.  ^  Ibid.,  no.  320. 


94       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

thousand  volumes  at  least,  when  the  perfidious  dispersion 
took  place.    The  known  facts  are  as  follows : 

In  April-May,  1776,  in  accord  with  a  demand  "from 
a  Number  of  Men  who  stiled  themselves  the  Committee 
of  Safety"^  the  College  building  was  given  up 
to  the  use  of  the  patriot  troops,  all  academic  exercises 
were  suspended,  and  the  books  and  apparatus  removed 
to  the  City  Hall.  There  they  were  probably  deposited  in 
the  old  Library  Room,  then  sheltering  the  Corporation 
Library  (presumably  including  the  Sharpe  Collection), 
the  Society  Library  and  the  Union  Library  Society. 
A  few  months  later  came  the  cataclysm,  when  all  alike 
suffered  disruption  and  other  indignities. 

Two  eye-witnesses  of  this  vandalism  have  left  on  rec- 
ord what  they  beheld.  John  Pintard  affirms  that  the 
British  soldiers  were  in  the  habit  of  carrying  off  the 
books  in  their  knapsacks  and  bartering  them  for  grog. 
Judge  Thomas  Jones,  though  of  strongly  loyal  sym- 
pathies, thus  unsparingly  draws  aside  the  curtain  on  the 
shameful  scene : 

Upon  General  Howe's  entry  into  New  York  in  September,  1776, 
the  soldiers  broke  open  the  City  Hall,  and  plundered  it  of  the 
College  Library,  its  Mathematical  and  Philosophical  apparatus 
and  a  number  of  valuable  pictures  which  had  been  removed  there 
by  way  of  safety  when  the  rebels  converted  the  CoUege  into  a 
hospital.  ...  I  saw  in  a  public  house  upon  Long  Island  nearly 
40  books  bound  and  lettered,  in  which  were  affixed  the  arms  of 
Joseph  Murray,  Esq.,  under  pawn  from  one  dram  to  three 
drams  each.  .  .  .  All  this  was  done  with  impunity,  publicly,  and 
openly.  No  punishment  was  ever  inflicted  upon  the  plunderers. 
No  attempts  were  made  by  the  British  Commanders  to  obtain 
restitution  of  the  stolen  goods,  nor  did  they  ever  discounte- 

^  From  "The  Matricula"  of  King's  College. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  KING'S  COLLEGE  95 

nance  such  unjustifiable  proceedings,  by  issuing  orders   con- 
demning such  unmilitary  conduct,  and  forbidding  it  in  future.-' 

Though  our  author  here  denounces  his  own  side,  and  in 
no  gentle  terms,  he  is  yet  in  error  with  regard  to  his  last 
charge,  as  will  presently  appear.  Writing  as  he  did  in 
England,  upwards  of  ten  years  after  the  perpetration 
of  these  outrages,  memory  may  well  have  played  him 
false,  the  Attainder  Act  of  1782  preventing  him  from 
verifying  recollection  or  securing  correct  information. 
As  a  matter  of  fact  no  fewer  than  four  proclamations 
were  issued  by  his  Majesty's  military  representatives, 
their  language  testifying  unmistakably  to  a  high  regard 
for  law  and  order.  The  first  of  these  was  published  in 
Gaine's  Gazette  and  Weekly  Mercury  for  February  3, 
1777,  as  follows : 

PROCLAMATION. 

INFORMATION  having  been  made  to  Major-General  Robert- 
son, that  the  Library  of  King's  College,  and  of  the  Society 
Library  in  the  City  of  New- York,  have  been  pillaged,  as  well  of 
the  Books  as  of  Part  of  the  Philosophical  Apparatus.  Pubmc 
Notice  is  hereby  given,  that  in  the  Books  belonging  to  the 
College  is  placed  either  the  Arms  of  the  CoUege,  or  of  the  So- 
ciety for  propagating  the  Gospel,  and  in  some  of  them  the  Arms 
of  Joseph  Murray,  Esq ;  and  that  in  the  Books  of  the  City  So- 
ciety Library,  is  placed  the  Arms  of  the  said  Society,  or  that 
the  several  Books  so  pillaged  are  otherwise  so  marked,  that  no 
one  can  be  ignorant  to  whom  they  respectively  belong.  And 
all  Persons  in  whose  Hands  any  of  the  said  Books  or  Apparatus 
now  are,  by  whatever  means  they  came  into  their  Possession,  are 
hereby  strictly  ordered,  within  TEN  DAYS,  to  deliver  the 
same  to  the  Printer  hereof,  for  the  Use  of  the  respective  Pro- 

^  Thomas  Jones.    History  of  New       War.    Edited  by  Edward  F.  deLan- 
York     during      the     Revolutionary       cey.    New  York,  1879.    I,  136. 


96       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

prietors,  or  they  will  be  committed  to  the  Provost,^  and  pun- 
ished as  Receivers  of  stolen  Goods. 
New-York,  nth  January,  1777.       JAMES  ROBERTSON. 


PROCLAMATION. 

INFORMATION  Iiaving  Usn  made 
to  Major  General  P  I  0  O  T,  that  U>€ 
Library  of  King's  College,  and  the  Society 
Library  in  ihc  City  of  Ncw-Yoik,  have  been 
pillaged*  as  well  of  the  Books  as  of  Ton  of 
the  PiiildbpKical  Apparatus,  of  the  natural 
and  anaccmical  Curiohtics,  &c.  PUBLIC 
NOTICE  is  hereby  given,  That  in  the 
Books  belonging  to  the  College,  is  placed 
cither  tlie  Arms  of  the  College,  or  of  the 
Society  fbr  propagating  the  Gofpcl ;  and  that 
in  the  Biabks  of  the  City  Society  Library,  is 
placed  the  Arms  of  the  faid  Society ;  or  that  the 
levcral  Books  io  pillaged,  are  otherwife  fo  . 
marked  that  no  one  can  be  ignorant  to  whom 
they  reipeftively  belong.  And  all  Perfons  in 
whofe  Hands  any  of  the  faid  Books  or  Appa- 
ratus, &c.  now  are,  hy  whatever  Means  they 
cartie  into  their  Poffeffion,  are  hereby  ftriftly 
ordered  within  One  Mcnth,  to  deliver  the  fame 
to  the  Reverend  Mr.  Houfeal,  Minifter  of  the 
ancient  Lutheran  Trinity-Church,  living  in 
Little  Queen-Street,  at  No.  lo;  of  this  City, 
for  the  Ulc  of  the  refpedivc  Proprietors  ;  or 
they  will  be  committed  to  the  Provoft,  and 
puniflied  as* Receivers  of  itolcn  Goods. 
NEW. YORK,  26th  March,  1777. 

Rt.    PIGOT. 

Proclamation  (facsimile  size)  by  British  commander  for 
return  of  King's  College  and  Society  Library  books,  plun- 
dered from  City  Hall.  From  Hugh  Gaine's  The  New-York 
Gazette;  and  the  Weekly  Mercury,  March  31,  1777.  See 
pp.  95-97,  194-195. 

A  similar  notice,  signed  by  Major-General  Pigot,  ap- 
peared in  the  same  newspaper  for  March  31st,  when  the 

*The  old  debtors'  prison,  used  by  the  present  City  Hall,  it  was  long 
the  British  to  incarcerate  "rebels."  known  as  the  Hall  of  Records  until 
Standing  a  little  to  the  south-east  of       taken  down  in  1902-1903. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  KING'S  COLLEGE  97 

period  in  which  missing  books  must  be  returned  was  ex- 
tended to  ''One  Month/ ^^  Their  recipient  this  time  was 
to  be  "the  Reverend  Mr.  Houseal,  Minister  of  the  an- 
cient Lutheran  Trinity-Church,  living  in  Little  Queen- 
Street,  at  No.  10,  of  this  City."^ 

Just  how  many  volumes  were  restored  in  response  to 
these  commands,  there  is  no  knowing.  An  earlier  re- 
quest for  their  return  had  been  inserted  in  the  Gazette 
and  Mercury  for  several  weeks  in  October  and  Novem- 
ber, 1776,  by  Samuel  Glossy,  M.D.,  who  held  the  pro- 
fessorship in  anatomy,  as  follows : 

IF  any  person  into  whose  hands  part  of  the  College  apparatus 
or  books,  which  were  deposited  in  the  City-Hall  in  May  last, 
or  any  of  Dr.  Clossy's  books,  which  were  deposited  in  the 
closet  near  the  organ  loft  in  St.  Paul's,  will  bring  them  to  the 
doctor,  at  the  house  where  Dr.  Bard  lately  lived,  the  favour  will 
be  very  gratefully  acknowledged;  and  whatever  trouble  or  ex- 
pence  such  person  may  have  been  at  in  carrying  such  instru- 
ments or  books,  the  doctor  wiU  very  gratefully  pay  them  for. 

The  allusion  in  this  notice  to  a  deposit  of  books  in  Old 
St.  Paul's  at  once  suggests  the  extract  already  quoted 
from  President  Moore  on  page  36,  that  "of  the  books 
recovered,  six  or  seven  hundred  volumes  were  so,  only 
after  about  thirty  years,  when  they  were  found,  with  as 
many  belonging  to  the  N.  Y.  Society  Library,  and  some 

*  These  proclamations  were  also  he  was  a  Governor  of  King's  Col- 
printed  in  German  in  the  same  col-  lege  and  of  the  New  York  Hospital, 
umns,  entitled  "Eine  Offentliche  An  ardent  loyalist,  he  left  for  Nova 
Bekanntmachung,"  and  signed  "Von  Scotia  when  the  British  evacuated  the 
Heister,"  the  Hessian  commander.  city  in  November,  1783.    D.  Johann 

^  The    Eev.    Bern(h)ard    Michael  Ludewig  Schulze.     Nachrichten  von 

Houseal,    D.V.M.,    was    pastor    of  den  vereinigten  Deutschen  Evange- 

Trinity  Lutheran  Church,  corner  of  lisch-LutherischenOemeinen  in  Nord- 

Broadway  and  Rector  street,   from  America,     1787.       AUentown,     Pa., 

1770  to  1783.     A  man  of  imposing  1886.    P.  634  et  seq. 
personality,    culture   and    eloquence. 


98       THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

belonging  to  Trinity  Church,  in  a  room  in  St.  Paul's 
Chapel,  where,  it  seemed,  no  one  but  the  Sexton  had 
been  aware  of  their  existence,  and  neither  he  nor  any- 
body else  could  tell  how  they  had  arrived  there." 

Whether  the  miscellaneous  assortment  was  actually 
protected  all  those  years  by  a  stoned-up  doorway,^  there 
is  a  reasonable  doubt,  partially  confirmed  by  a  contem- 
porary statement  in  print  that  the  books  "were  not  for- 
gotten, as  reported,  but  have  been  visited  frequently  by 
Bishop  Provoost  and  others."^  So  interesting  is  the  an- 
nouncement that  finally  focused  attention  on  the  long- 
neglected  tomes,  that  it  should  be  seen  in  full  as  it  caught 
the  eye  of  readers  of  the  Morning  Chronicle  on  Decem- 
ber 13,  1802: 

COMMUNICATION.— A  report  prevailed  a  day  or  two  past  of  a 
splendid  library  having  been  found  in  a  part  of  the  chancel  of 
St.  Paul's  church  by  the  workmen  employed  in  preparing  a 
place  for  the  organ.  It  was  supposed  to  have  originally  be- 
longed to  Columbia  College,  and  to  have  been  locked  up  and 
forgotten  ever  since  the  revolution.  On  investigating  the  mat- 
ter, however,  it  was  found  to  be  merely  a  hoax^  invented  by 
some  wag  to  quiz  the  natives  a  few.  The  report  had  gained  so 
much  by  travelling  that  it  was  said  a  librarian  was  discovered 
with  the  library,  who,  on  coming  out  into  the  city,  was  quite 
surprised  with  the  changes  that  had  taken  place ! !  ^ 

Although  this  quasi-resurrection  was  labeled  "a  hoax" 
by  the  witty  contributor,  and  despite  editorial  explana- 
tion next  day  that  the  "two  thousand  volumes"  in  ques- 
tion   were    "the   remains    of    a   library   presented    by 

^Seepage  36.  editorially  next  day:  "The  part  of 

^The   Morning    Chronicle,   N.    Y.,  the   report   concerning  a  librarian's 

Dec  14,  1802.  having  been   discovered  with   them, 

^  Apropos    of   this   last   witticism,  though   probable   enough,  is  a  mis- 

the     Morning     Chronicle     rMnarked  take." 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  KING'S  COLLEGE  99 

different  persons  to  Trinity  Church,  many  years  since"; 
nevertheless,  that  among  them  were  certainly  some  sur- 
vivors of  the  old  King's  College  collection  is  proven,  not 
merely  by  President  N.  F.  Moore's  later  assertion,  but 
according  to  minutes  of  the  Trustees  of  Columbia  Col- 
lege. On  August  1,  1803,  President  Benjamin  Moore 
"presented  a  Letter  from  Valentine  Nutter^  respecting 
the  Books  lately  f  oimd  in  St  Paul's  Church ;  which,  being 
read,  was  committed  to  the  Treasurer  to  consider  & 
report." 

No  further  reference  to  the  subject  is  found  in  the 
Trustees'  records,  the  long-missing  volumes  doubtless 
being  returned  with  little  parade  to  their  former  repos- 
itory, whose  name  had  in  the  meantime  been  changed  to 
Columbia  College.  And  to-day  the  great  Library  of 
Columbia  University  cherishes  among  its  treasures  a 
handful  of  books  known  to  have  formed  a  portion  of  the 
King's  College  collection.  A  few  of  them  still  bear  the 
elegant  "arms"  of  the  Hon.  Joseph  Murray,  Esq.,  "of 
the  Middle  Temple,"  while  others  are  adorned  with  the 
bookplate  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Duncombe  Bristowe,  as  also 
with  the  ancient  emblem  of  the  Venerable  Society  for 
the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts.^ 


*  A  large  landholder  in  upper  tains  perfect  copies  of  both  S.  P.  G. 
Manhattan,  for  years  a  warden  of  and  Bristowe  bookplates.  Cf.  p.  37. 
St.  Michael's  parish.  Before  and  On  the  fly-leaf  of  a  survivor  of  the 
during  the  Revolution  there  had  collection  (now  in  the  Columbia  Li- 
been  a  prominent  **bookbinder"  of  brary),  a  copy  of  Thomas  Hutchin- 
that  name  in  the  city,  "opposite  the  son's  History  of  the  Colony  of 
Coffee-House"  in  Broad  street.  Massachusetts-Bay  (Boston,  1764),  is 

==  There  is  in  the  Library  of  the  written:  "The  Gift  of  The  Rev'd  Mr 

General     Theological     Seminary     a  Jeremy    Condy,    of    Boston,    to    the 

single  folio  volume,  once  a  part  of  Library  of  King's   College  in   New 

this  collection,  A  Rational  Account  York.    Novr  1766."    This  gentleman, 

of  the   Grounds   of  Protestant  Re-  '*well  esteemed  among  his  associates" 

ligion  ...  By     the     Rev.     Edward  (Memorial  History  of  Boston),  was 

Stillingfleet,    D.D.      London,     1681.  pastor  of  the  First  Baptist  Church, 

It  is  in  excellent  condition  and  con-  1739-1768. 


100     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

To  the  man  of  sentiment  these  antiquated  and  now 
imread  books  are  very  appealing,  not  alone  as  repre- 
senting the  earliest  College  Library  in  the  province  of 


New  York,  as  also  the  noble  aim  of  enlightened  donors, 
but  as  being  tangible,  eloquent  evidence  of  that  old  Li- 
brary, which,  in  helping  to  mold  the  youthful  minds  of 
such  men  as  Egbert  Benson,  Robert  R.  Livingston, 
John  Jay  and  Alexander  Hamilton,  has  fairly  earned 
the  reverential  regard  of  a  nation. 


BOOKSELLERS'  CIRCULATING  l,l3It*RJi5ft     ^01 


6,  Booksellers'  Circulating  Libraries,  17 68 -177 6 

As  is  only  too  well  known,  New  York  was  lamentably 
behind  its  Puritan  neighbors  in  an  appreciation  of  the 
printed  page.  William  Bradford,  who  introduced 
printing  to  the  Knickerbockers  in  1693,^  would  seem  to 
have  been  also  the  first  local  dealer  in  books.  In  this  line 
he  had  no  competitors  for  over  a  generation,  for,  ac- 
cording to  an  English  visitor  in  1719,  there  was  then 
"but  one  little  Bookseller's  Shop"  in  New  York  city, 
whereas  the  Boston  Exchange  was  "surrounded  with 
Booksellers'  Shops,  which  have  a  good  Trade."  In 
fairness  to  the  former,  however,  should  be  quoted  his 
further  comment  that  there  was  "in  the  Plantations  of 
Virginia,  Maryland,  CaroUna,  Barbadoes,  and  the  Is- 
lands, none  at  aU."^ 

These  statements  are  corroborated  by  Dr.  Franklin, 
who  has  recorded  that  about  the  year  1725  "there  was 
not  a  good  bookseller's  shop  in  any  of  the  colonies  to 
the  southward  of  Boston."  He  observes  wittily  that 
the  printers  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia,  in  offering 
for  sale  "only  paper,  etc.,  almanacs,  ballads,  and  a  few 
common  school-books,"  "were  indeed  stationers."^ 

Following  Bradford  in  succession  came  John  Peter 
Zenger,  James  Parker  and  Hugh  Gaine,  all  noteworthy 
names  in  the  history  of  metropolitan  printing  and  jour- 
nalism.    From  the  character  of  their  calling  they  nat- 

*  Printing    was    begun    in    Cam-       of  New-England.     2d  edition,  Lon- 
bridge,  Mass.,  in  1639,  by  Stephen       don,  1747.    Vol.  II,  p.  225. 

Daye.      Pennsylvania    came    second  '  The  Complete   Works  of  Benja- 

of    the    colonies,    with    Bradford's  min  Franklin.     Edited  by  John  Bige- 

press  at  Philadelphia  in  1685.  low.     New  York,  1887.     Vol.  I,  pp. 

*  Daniel  Neal,  A.M.     The  History  167-168. 


'It^     q?HE  ti^IBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

urally  were  booksellers  also.  So  far  as  has  been  ascer- 
tained, however,  none  of  these  individuals— nor  con- 
temporary lesser  lights  in  the  typographical  firmament 
— appears  to  have  essayed  a  Circulating  Library,  al- 
ready a  well-established  English  institution,  one  having 
been  in  operation  in  London  as  early  as  1674/  The 
nearest  approach  to  anything  of  the  kind  was,  it  will  be 
recalled,  James  Parker's  vain  though  brave  attempt  in 
1745  to  manage  the  Corporation  Library  with  a  view  to 
personal  profit.^  The  actual  inauguration  of  this 
branch  of  commercial  activity  in  New  York  was  re- 
served for  a  bookseller  who  was  never  a  printer  at  all, — 
Garrat  Noel. 

The  pedigree  and  early  years  of  this  enterprising  and 
useful  citizen  must  be  left  for  future  research  to  tell. 
He  was  well  in  his  prime  when,  in  March,  1753,  he  was 
registered  a  freeman  of  the  city  under  the  appellation 
of  "Schoolmaster."^  Not  finding  this  occupation  suffi- 
ciently lucrative,  however,  in  May  of  the  same  year  he 
opened  a  bookstore  in  Dock,  now  Pearl,  street,  near 
Coenties  market,  "at  the  Sign  of  the  Bible,"  where  he 
advertised  for  sale,  besides  "Books,  Stationary,  &c.,"  "a 
fresh  Parcel  of  the  right  Tooth  Powder,  and  Stough- 
ton's  famous  Bitters." 

He  prospered  to  such  an  extent  that  in  August,  1763, 
he  felt  able  to  embark  in  a  semi-commercial,  semi-liter- 
ary venture  hitherto  untried  in  New  York,  and  which, 
strange  to  say,  had  not  yet  been  undertaken  in  Boston.^ 

^Francis     Kirkman,     author    and  '    'List  of  "Burghers  and  Freemen, 

bookseller  (b.  1632),  combined  with  1675-1866."     IV.    Y.   Historical   So- 

his  regular  business  "that  of  a  cir-  ciety  Collections  for  1885.    P.  177. 

culating  library,  his  specialty  being  *  See  article  by  Charles  K.  Bolton, 

plays,  poetry,  and  romances."    {Diet.  "Circulating    Libraries    in     Boston, 

Natl.  Biog.)  1765-1865,"   in   Proceedings   of    the 

^  See  pp.  72-76.  Colonial    Society    of    Mass.,    Feb., 


BOOKSELLERS^  CIRCULATING  LIBRARIES     103 

The  idea  may  have  been  suggested  to  him  with  force  at 
that  particular  time  by  the  temporary  closing  of  the 
Corporation  Library  on  account  of  repairs  to  the  City 
Hall— a  suspension  which  must  have  been  shared  in 
some  measure  by  the  Society  Library.  At  all  events,  he 
took  advantage  of  the  situation  and  issued  in  the  news- 
papers this  announcement,  here  taken  from  Weyman^s 
The  New-York  Gazette  for  August  29th: 

To  those  who  delight  in  Reading,  And  would  spend  their 
Leisure  Hours,  and  Winter  Evenings,  with  Profit  and  Enter- 
tainment, This  is  to  give  Notice,  that  this  Day  is  opened  by 
GARRAT  NOEL,  Bookseller  next  Door  to  the  Merchants  Cof- 
fee-House,  A  CIRCULATING  LIBRARY;  Consisting  of  sev- 
eral Thousand  Volumes  of  choice  Books,  in  History,  Divinity, 
Travels,  Voyages,  Novels,  &c. 

A  Catalogue  of  the  Books,  with  the  Conditions  of  subscrib- 
ing, may  be  seen  at  said  Noel's  Store. Where  are  SOLD 

aU  Sorts  of  Books  and  Stationary  Ware :  And  Country  Stores, 
and  Chapmen,  are  supplied.  Wholesale  and  Retail,  on  the  very 
lowest  Terms. 

Said  NOEL  has  likewise  to  sell,  the  very  best  of  Durham 
Flour  of  Mustard,  and  a  fresh  Parcel  of  very  fine  Snuff,  com- 
monly called  Black  Guard. 

In  the  same  journal  for  September  12th  following, 
Mr.  Noel  proclaims  a  large  addition  to  the  Library, 
justifying  his  enterprise  on  the  ground  that  "sundry 
Gentlemen"  had  "for  a  long  Time  been  desirous  of  see- 
ing such  a  Thing  established  in  this  City,"  and  that 

1908,  pp.  196-207.     And  even  a  few  plan."       (South    Carolina    Gazette, 

months    before    Garrat    Noel's   ven-  March  5-12,  1763.)     For  mention  of 

ture,  George  Wood,  bookbinder  and  other    Circulating    Libraries    in    the 

stationer   in   Charleston,   S.   C,   ad-  colonies,  see  Charles   Evans'  monu- 

vertised  his  intent  "to  set  on  foot  A  mental  and  invaluable  American  Bib- 

CiRcuLATiNG  Library"  for  "Gentle-  /io^r^JopAy  (Chicago,  1903),  vol.  4,  p.  x.- 
men   and   Ladies   that  approve  this 


104     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

many  persons  had  "given  their  Approbation  by  sub- 
scribing to  the  One  now  on  Foot."  The  "Conditions 
for  subscribing,"  he  trusts,  "will  not,  for  the  Present, 
be  tho't  unreasonable,  as  the  Books  are  all  new,  the 
Number  already  very  considerable,  and  will  be  con- 
stantly increasing,  especially  by  all  the  new  published 
Books,  Pamphlets,  Magazines,  and  Reviews,  &c."  The 
"Conditions"  were  as  follows : 

1.  Each  Subscriber  to  pay  Five  Dollars  a  Year,  viz.  Two 
Dollars  on  subscribing,  and  One  Dollar  at  the  Beginning  of 
each  Quarter  afterwards. 

2.  No  Subscriber  to  take  above  one  Book  at  a  Time  out  of 
the  Library. 

3.  Any  Subscriber  losing  or  spoiling  a  Book,  shall  pay  the 
full  Price  of  it,  or  the  Set,  taking  the  Remainder. 

NOTE, — Books  will  be  delivered  out  of  the  Library  any 
Time,  except  Sundays,  and  after  Store  is  shut. 

The  institution  seems  to  have  maintained  itself, 
though  with  little  or  no  advertising,  for  Weyman's 
Gazette  on  October  8,  1764,  announces  it  as  "now 
opened  for  the  second  Year,  with  the  Addition  of  sev- 
eral Hundred  Volimies  of  choice  Books."  There  is  sig- 
nificance, however,  in  the  statement  that  those  "pleased 
to  become  Subscribers"  might  "read  a  whole  Year  at  the 
easy  Rate  of  Four  Dollars" ! 

Noel's  Library  continued  to  exist  until  the  fall  of 
1765,  at  least.  In  August  of  that  year  the  Common 
Council,  it  will  be  remembered,  again  had  a  spasmodic 
realization  of  the  latent  value  of  its  Public  Library,  and, 
on  the  restoration  of  the  City  Hall,  appointed  Thomas 
Jackson  to  take  charge  of  the  old  Corporation  Library 
in  conjunction  with  his   duties   as   Librarian  of  the 


BOOKSELLERS'  CIRCULATING  LIBRARIES     105 

Society  Library.^  Mr.  Noel  was  moved  by  this  action  to 
append  a  note  to  his  regular  advertisement  in  Holt's 
The  New-York  Gazette;  or  the  Weekly  Post-Boy,  for 
September  5th  and  12th,  as  follows: 


The  Subscribers  to  NOEL's  circulating  Library  are 
hereby  informed,  that  there  is  an  Addition  made  of  several 
new  Books,  and  more  expected  for  their  entertainment,  and  of 
those  who  shall  think  proper  to  become  encouragers  of  this 
useful  undertaking. 

Again,  on  September  19th,  in  the  very  issue  of  this 
same  paper  that  first  proclaimed  the  anticipated  re- 
nascence of  the  "New- York  Librahy,"^  there  was  put 
forth  a  more  elaborate  address,  containing  the  same 
terms  of  subscription  as  the  year  before,  and  a  state- 
ment of  catalogues  "to  be  had  gratis."^  Here,  after  an 
array  of  titles  of  recent  importations,  comprehending 
"a  vast  Variety  of  all  Sorts  of  Books,"  the  public  was 
informed  of  the  continuance  of  the  Circulating  Library, 
"with  a  large  Addition  of  choice  Books,  particularly 
those  that  have  been  lately  published." 

This  notice  appeared  in  the  next  number  of  Holt's 
Gazette  for  the  second  and  last  time.  Apparently  Mr. 
Noel  abandoned  his  project  as  profitless,  especially  in 
competition  with  a  natural  stir  over  the  renovated  col- 
lections in  the  City  Hall,  which  represented  more  dis- 
tinctly a  public  movement.  So  he  devoted  himself 
thereafter  to  heralding  new  or  seasonable  publications 
and  to  other  details  of  his  regular  business.    The  f  oUow- 

^  See  pp.  79-80.  of  Noel's  stock-in-trade  in  1755  and 

^  See  p.  80.  1762.     See    The   Journals   of  Hugh 

•■'  No  copies  of  his  Circulating  Li-  Gaine,    Printer.     Edited    by    Paul 

brary  catalogues  are  known  to  be  ex-  Leicester   Ford.     New  York,    1902. 

tant.     They  were  probably  printed  Vol.  I,  pp.  94,  110. 

by  Gaine,  who  published  catalogues 


106     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

ing  week,  for  example,  he  advertised  a  work  of  current 
import  in  that  exciting  Stamp  Act  year,  "Oppression,  a 
Poem,  by  an  American,  with  Notes  by  a  North  Briton. 
Occasioned  by  the  Grievances  of  the  Times."  Besides 
books  and  "stationary,"  he  sold  cutlery,  patent  medi- 
cines and  miscellaneous  articles,  including  at  one  time 
"extraordinary  good  Violins  and  Flutes,  with  an  As- 
sortment of  New  Music,"  ^  and  again  "a  few  extraor- 
dinary good  Temple  Spectacles,  with  Brazil  Pebble 
Eyes,  set  in  Steel  and  Silver,  double  Joints,  in  very  neat 
Cases,  from  Three  to  Five  Poimds  per  Pair."^ 

Without  saying  more  of  his  "general  Assortment  of 
Books"  than  that  it  comprised  standard  English  works 
of  the  day,  the  subjoined  extract  from  a  newspaper  in- 
sertion will  prove  of  interest,  as  showing  the  attention 
he  paid  to  juvenile  tastes: 

And  what  should  not  be  forgot,  A  very  large  Parcel  of  Mr. 
Newberry's  beautiful  gilt  Picture  Books,  for  the  Entertainment 
of  his  old  Friends  the  pretty  Masters  and  Misses  of  New- York, 
at  Christmas  and  New- Year; — Amongst  them  they  will  find, 
The  History  of  Giles  Gingerbread,  Esq;  The  History  of  Goody 
Two  Shoes.  Nurse  Trueloves  Christmas  Box  and  New  Years 
Gift.  The  Easter,  Whitsuntide,  and  Valentine  Gifts.  The 
Fairing  or  Golden  Toy.  The  Little  Lottery  Book.  Be  Merry 
and  Wise.  Master  Tommy  Trap  wits  Jests.  Poems  for 
Children  Six  Feet  high. — Royal  Primmer,  Royal  Battledore, 
&c.  &c.  &C.3 

After  the  lapse  of  fully  three  years,  however,  the 
project  was  revived  "upon  a  very  extensive  Plan."  So 
promises  an  advertisement  in  Mr.  Noel's  characteristic 

^  John  Holt's  The  New-York  Jour-  *  lUd.,  July  7,  1768. 

nal,  or  General  Advertiser,  Dec.  18,  ^  Ibid.,  Dec.  18,  1766. 

1766. 


BOOKSELLERS'  CIRCULATING  LIBRARIES     107 

style  in  Holt's  Journal  for  September  1,  1768.  It  was 
to  open  on  October  1st  at  the  same  place,  when  the 
"Terms"  would  be  divulged  to  any  "inclined  to  sub- 
scribe." The  notice  closes  with  a  request  that  those 
having  books  "belonging  to  the  former  Circulating  Li- 
brary" should  "return  them  forthwith,  or  it  will  be  ex- 
pected that  they  will  pay  for  them,  agreeable  to  the 
Articles." 

So  far  as  has  been  ascertained,  this  effort  was  fruit- 
less and  was  the  last  attempt  made  by  Mr.  Noel  to  con- 
duct a  Circulating  Library.  For  nearly  a  decade  longer 
he  continued  business  "in  his  usual  Way,"  as  a  press 
notice  phrased  it.  In  April,  1771,  he  admitted  to  part- 
nership Ebenezer  Hazard,  the  firm,  as  "Noel  and  Haz- 
ard, Booksellers,"  for  some  years  occupying  his  old 
station,  "Next  Door  to  the  Coffee-House."  In  the 
spring  of  1776  they  were  located  "At  the  Post-Office," 
in  Broad  street. 

Throughout  his  sojourn  in  New  York,  Garrat  Noel 
had  been  very  intimately  identified  with  the  historic 
First  Presbyterian  Church.  Its  old  manuscript  records 
plainly  reveal  not  merely  his  membership  and  that  of 
"Experience  his  Wife,"  but  also  his  constant  services,  as 
a  trustee  for  the  years  1757  and  1758,  and  thereafter  as 
an  elder  until  his  death.  He  also  held  the  treasurership 
from  November,  1767,  to  May,  1773,  besides  acting  as 
"Stated  Clerk  of  the  Session"  from  the  former  date  un- 
til January,  1774,  when  he  resigned  "by  Reason  of  In- 
firmity." 

Not  long  afterward  he  removed  to  Elizabethtown, 
New  Jersey,  where  he  died,  September  22,  1776,  in  his 
seventieth  year.  His  long-time  fellow-citizen,  Hugh 
Gaine,  not  content  with  saying  that  he  was  for  "many 


108     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

years  an  eminent  bookseller,  in  the  city  of  New- York," 
adds  in  evident  sincerity:  "He  was  a  kind  husband,  and 
tender  parent,  and  justly  esteemed  and  beloved  by  all 
that  knew  him."^  His  love  for  books  would  seem  to 
have  come  by  inheritance  to  his  grandson,  Anthony 
Bleecker,— son  of  Mary  Noel  and  Anthony  Lispenard 
Bleecker,— a  recognized  man  of  letters  of  his  day,  and 
who  for  the  last  seventeen  years  of  his  life  was  an  active 
member  of  the  board  of  Trustees  of  the  New  York  So- 
ciety Library. 

But  before  Garrat  Noel  left  New  York,  another 
attempt  was  made  to  establish  a  Circulating  Library 
there.  More  than  five  years  elapsed,  however,  between 
the  last-mentioned  advertisement  of  Mr.  Noel's  enter- 
prise and  the  initial  announcement  of  his  successor.  At 
length  there  came  to  the  front  a  person  of  the  requisite 
daring,  Samuel  Loudon,  a  Scotchman  by  birth  and  a 
ship-chandler  for  some  years  after  his  arrival  in  the  city, 
about  1760.  In  the  early  seventies  he  became  a  book- 
seller, and  meeting  with  success  decided  to  see  what 
more  might  be  accomplished  by  opening  a  Circulating 
Library  in  connection  with  his  regular  business.  Ac- 
cordingly he  advertised  in  Rivington's  New-York  Ga- 
zetteer on  December  30, 1773,  as  follows: 

Samuel  Loudon's 
Circulating  Library 

WILL  be  opened  the  first  day  of  January  1774 ;  subscrip- 
tions for  reading,  are  taken  in  at  his  house,  at  20  shil- 
lings per  annum,  half  to  be  paid  at  subscribing.     Occasional 

^  The  New-York  Gazette;  and  the      ark,  in  East-New-Jersey.    Saturday, 
Weekly  Mercury.     Printed  at  New-       Sept.  28,  1776. 


BOOKSELLERS'  CIRCULATING  LIBRARIES     109 

readers  to  pay  by  the  week,  or  volume;  the  prices  for  which, 
with  rules  for  reading,  will  be  particularly  affixed  to  the  cata- 
logue, which  is  now  printing,  and  will  be  ready  to  deliver  to  the 
subscribers,  and  other  readers,  next  month. 

The  design  is  set  on  foot  at  the  desire  of  several  very  respect- 
able inhabitants,  and  shall  be  conducted  with  all  possible  fidelity 
and  diligence,  in  providing  books,  both  instructive  and  enter- 
taining, and  written  by  authors  of  the  most  established  reputa- 
tion. It  is  hoped  that  all  who  approve  of  the  undertaking,  will 
do  their  utmost  to  encourage  it,  and  without  delay,  as  every 
body  may  see  that  it's  existance  and  perfection,  depends  on  the 
encouragement  it  meets  with,  by  enabling  the  undertaker  to 
provide,  and  keep  in  order,  a  sufficient  number  of  valuable 
books. 

A  few  weeks  later,  in  Gaine's  Gazette  and  Mercury 
for  January  24,  1774,  the  catalogue  was  announced, 
"ready  to  be  delivered  to  the  subscribers,  gratis/^  This 
would  "shew  a  neat  collection  of  books;  to  which  the 
proprietor  will  be  making  additions  by  every  oppor- 
tunity of  every  new  literary  production  of  value." 
Meanwhile,  those  persons  "willing  to  countenance  the 
undertaking"  were  requested  "to  be  speedy  with  their 
subscriptions." 

In  the  same  paper  for  November  21st  following,  Mr. 
Loudon  advertises  a  new  catalogue,  the  collection  hav- 
ing increased  to  "upwards  of  a  thousand  volumes."  The 
proprietor  takes  pleasure  in  informing  "all  such  con- 
noisseurs," as  disparaged  female  intelligence  and  love 
of  reading,  that  "the  ladies  are  his  best  customers,  and 
shew  a  becoming  delicacy  of  taste  in  their  choice  of 
books."  Lest  this  should  arouse  feeling,  he  hastens  to 
add:  "Neither  are  the  gentlemen  deficient  in  shewing 
the  ladies  a  laudable  example  in  this  respect."  The 
"prices  for  reading,"  payable  in  advance,  were: 


110     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

A  year  20  shillings.  And    occasional    readers    to 

Half  a  year  12  shillings.  pay  one  penny  for  each  shilling 

A  quarter  8  shillings.  the  book  they  read  is  valued  at. 

The  library  open  every  week  day,  from  morning  till  night. 

And,  from  a  "sketch  of  the  rules,"  non-subscribers  were 

.  .  .  to  pay  when  each  book  is  delivered,  to  give  a  note  for  the 
value  of  the  book  they  receive,  if  required, — one  book  to  be  re- 
turned before  another  is  dehvered,  the  time  allowed  to  read  an 
octavo  volume  is  one  week,  a  quarto  two  weeks,  and  a  folio  four 
weeks, — readers  in  the  country  to  be  indulged  with  two  or  three 
volumes  at  a  time,  to  be  sent  and  returned  (at  their  own  risque 
and  charge) — Books  to  be  paid  for  if  lost  or  abused. — Books 
are  not  to  be  lent  by  the  subscribers. 

A  notice  in  Holt's  Journal  for  February  23,  1775, 
reports  "the  addition  of  several  hundred  volumes,"  quot- 
ing a  few  attractive  titles  and  adding,  no  less  alluringly : 
"Novels,  a  variety;  History,  a  considerable  number;  and 
sundry  miscellaneous  pieces."  The  proprietor  promises 
that  a  "Supplement  to  the  Library  Catalogue"  will  soon 
appear,  and  that  "every  opportunity  in  his  power  shall 
be  improved  to  increase  the  variety  and  number  of  useful 
Books,  that  his  Library  may  be  rendered  more  and 
more  a  lasting  friend  of  knowledge  and  entertainment." 
The  regulations  continued  the  same,  with  these  slight 
improvements,  indicative  of  popularity:  "The  Library 
is  open  from  morning  to  eight  at  night,  and  the  Readers 
may  have  a  Book  exchanged  if  they  please,  every  day, 
by  their  very  humble  servant,  Samuel  Loudon." 

Mr.  Loudon  must  have  been  "encouraged"  appre- 
ciably, for  in  January,  1776,  he  further  extended  his 
activities  to  include  the  publication  of  a  weekly  news- 
paper, The  New-York  Packet,  and  the  American  Ad- 


BOOKSELLERS'  CIRCULATING  LIBRARIES     111 

vertiser.  In  a  brief  address  he  thanks  the  public  for  as- 
surances of  support,  and  presents  "the  compliments  of 
the  season  to  his  kind  Customers ;  wishing,  that  the  year 
1776  may  be  the  happy  iEra,  in  which  Peace  and  Union, 
on  a  Constitutional  Basis,  shall  be  concluded  between 
Great-Britain  and  her  Colonies." 

That  his  Circulating  Library  had  also  flourished  is  in- 
ferable from  a  notice  in  this  same  first  number  of  his 
own  paper,  that  it  was  "increased  to  upwards  of  Two 
Thousand  Volumes."  He  again  promised  a  supple- 
mentary list  of  books  for  subscribers  "to  annex  with  the 
Catalogue^  they  have  already,"  and  in  conclusion  thus 
announces  a  sort  of  exchange:  "Ready  money,  or  new 
books  exchanged  for  any  old  library  or  parcel  of  books, 
particularly  for  history  and  well  chosen  novels,  for  the 
use  of  the  Library." 

This  advertisement  was  renewed  regularly  until  well 
into  March.  But  the  enterprise  had  not  much  longer  to 
live.  As  a  commercial  venture,  pure  and  simple,  it  was 
dependent  on  its  proprietor's  attention  no  less  than  upon 
popular  "encouragement."  In  September,  1776,  Mr. 
Loudon,  a  zealous  Whig  and  patriot,  announced  his  re- 
moval to  Fishkill,  "where  the  Provincial  Congress  now 
reside,"  in  consequence  of  the  city's  invasion  "by  a 
powerful  Fleet  and  Army."^  Though  he  advertised  a 
suspension  of  the  Packet  "for  several  Weeks"  only,  his 
departure  meant  the  end  of  the  second  and  last  and  ap- 
parently a  successful  Bookseller's  Circulating  Library 
in  Colonial  New  York.^ 

'  No  copies  of  either  the  catalogue  left  New  York,  however,  Mr.  Lou- 

or  the  supplement  are  known  to  be  don    resumed    business    at    "No.    5, 

in  existence  at  the  present  writing.  Water-Street,    between    the    Coffee- 

*  The  New-York  Gazette;  and  the  House  and  Old  Slip,"  where  he  ad- 

Weekly  Mercury,  Sept.  2,  9,  1776.  vertised,  in  his  Packet  of  Nov.  13, 

'  Before  the  British  had  actually  1783,  '*to  commence  again,"  in  Janu- 


112     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 


7.  The  Union  Library  Society  of  New  York,  1771-1776 

With  the  single  exception  of  Garrat  Noel's  brief  at- 
tempts to  establish  a  Circulating  Library  as  a  commer- 
cial venture,  the  Society  Library  seems  to  have  had  the 
local  field  wholly  to  itself  for  more  than  seventeen 
years.  At  last,  however,  a  rival  appeared  upon  the 
scene.  In  December,  1771,  there  issued  from  the  press 
of  Samuel  Inslee  and  Anthony  Car,  "at  the  New  Print- 
ing-Office,  on  Beekman's-Slip,"  a  twelve-page  pamph- 
let, entitled  "Articles  of  the  Union  Library  Society  of 
New- York."  ^ 

The  objects  of  this  new  suitor  for  popular  support  are 
thus  announced: 

WHEREAS  an  advancement  in  knowledge  and  literature  is 
a  highly  laudable  pursuit,  and  attended  with  many  ad- 
vantages, as  well  to  individuals  as  society  in  general ;  and  as  the 
private  purchase  of  books  is  attended  with  an  expence  too  heavy 
for  many  persons  whose  inclinations  lead  them  to  improvement ; 
and  we  being  sensible  that  the  establishment  of  a  public  Library 
will  greatly  promote  the  attainment  of  so  valuable  an  acquisi- 
tion, have  therefore,  and  by  these  presents  do  unite  ourselves 
into  a  voluntary  association,  by  the  name  of  the  Union  Library 
Society  of  New- York,  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  and  con- 
tinuing a  Library,  for  the  benefit  of  ourselves,  and  all  others 
who  may  chuse,  upon  the  conditions  prescribed,  to  become  mem- 
bers thereof : 

ary,  1784,  "at  the  request  of  several  preference  to  the  public  Libraries, 

respectable    citizens,"    "The    Cmcu-  they    being    open    only    at    certain 

LATINO   Library,"    containing   about  hours,  his  at  all  hours  of  the  day, 

2000    volumes.      The    fact    of    "the  and  proper  attendance  given." 

public  Libraries  of  this  city  being  in  ^  The  only  copy  known  to  be  in  ex- 

a    great    measure    lost"    made    his  istence    is    in   the    Society    Library, 

enterprise  "the  more  necessary  and  having    been    presented    by    Henry 

useful    at    present."      Besides,    "in  NicoU,  a  Trustee,  in  June,  1838. 
point    of    convenience    it    had    the 


THE  UNION  LIBRARY  SOCIETY  113 

Following  this  preamble  come  twenty  regulations, 
^^obligatory  upon  every  member"  and  regarded  "as  a 
magna  charta  of  the  constitution,"  to  be  repealed  "either 
altogether  or  in  part"  only  by  a  three-fourths  majority 
of  the  Society.  In  brief  they  direct  all  property  of  the 
institution  to  be  held  "in  common,  and  not  in  joint  ten- 
ancy," each  member  having  the  right  to  assign  or  de- 
vise his  share.  At  the  annual  meeting,  to  be  held  on  the 
&st  Tuesday  in  May,  a  Treasurer  and  twelve  Directors 
must  be  chosen,  such  election  to  be  in  charge  of  a  Secre- 
tary, "some  fit  person  of  the  company,"  with  the  assist- 
ance of  suitable  inspectors.  Vacancies  in  the  directorate 
or  treasurership  were  to  be  filled  by  the  board,  which  was 
also  to  elect  a  President  and  Vice-President  each  year. 
The  Directors  were  to  meet  on  the  second  Tuesday  of 
each  month  "at  the  place  where  the  library  shall  be  kept, 
or  at  some  other  fit  place  in  the  city,"  seven  of  their 
number,  always  including  an  officer,  constituting  a 
quorum;  and  they  were  entrusted  with  the  entire  man- 
agement of  affairs,  even  to  removing  the  Treasurer  for 
incompetency  or  neglect. 

As  in  the  case  of  the  Society  Library,  the  annual  pay- 
ment charge  was  fixed  at  ten  shillings ;  but  the  subscrip- 
tion cost  of  a  share  or  right,  it  is  of  interest  to  note,  was 
the  modest  sum  of  twenty  shilUngs,  or  only  a  fifth  of  the 
price  charged  throughout  those  years  by  the  older  or- 
ganization. Penalties  for  "arrearages"  were  to  be 
strictly  enforced,  offenders  being  "debarred  the  privi- 
ledge  of  taking  any  book  from  the  library."  Each  mem- 
ber was  to  have  only  one  vote,  however  many  shares  he 
might  own ;  and  a  very  radical  provision  entitled  a  per- 
son holding  more  than  one  share  to  take  out  no  more 
books  than  any  other  member.    It  is  difficult  to  see  in 


114     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

this  last  prohibition  any  inducement  to  purchase  extra 
shares. 

The  concluding  article  is  a  resolution  nominating,  "for 
the  immediate  putting  in  execution  our  useful  designs," 
a  list  of  twelve  Directors  and  a  Treasurer,  "invested 
with  full  power  and  authority  to  enter  immediately  upon 
their  respective  offices,"  as  follows:  Walter  Franklin, 
Jacob  Watson,  John  Murray,  Willet  Seaman,  Garret 
Rapalje,  Benjamin  Hugget,  White  Matlack,  Lindley 
Murray,  John  Berrien,  William  Denning,  James  Mott 
and  Benjamin  Underbill,  Directors,  and  Robert  Bowne, 
Treasurer. 

All  of  these  names  represent  position  and  influence  in 
the  community,  particularly  among  the  mercantile  ele- 
ment. Walter  Franklin,  the  head  of  a  large  importing 
house,  and  Robert  Bowne,  a  prosperous  retail  merchant, 
were  afterwards  original  stockholders  and  directors  of 
the  Bank  of  New  York,  the  former  having  been  also  a 
founder  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  in  1768,  of  which 
institution  John  Murray  was  later  to  become  president. 
Garret  Rapalje  and  Benjamin  Hugget  were  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  assistant  aldermen,  serving  on  important 
committees,  in  the  days  when  the  Common  Council  had 
jurisdiction  over  all  departments  of  municipal  adminis- 
tration. Lindley  Murray,  a  member  of  the  colonial  bar, 
will  ever  be  best  known  by  the  appellation  of  "the  gram- 
marian." Of  the  subsequent  patriotic  and  useful  career 
of  William  Denning,  due  notice  will  be  taken  in  chron- 
icling the  history  of  the  Society  Library,  which  institu- 
tion he  served  as  Trustee  for  fifteen  years,  long  after 
the  Union  Library  Society  had  ceased  to  exist. 

The  little  brochure  closes  with  a  clause  of  agreement 
and  subscription,  dated  December  3,  1771.     Unfortu- 


THE  UNION  LIBRARY  SOCIETY  115 

nately  the  names  of  subscribers  are  not  included,  and  it  is 
not  for  over  a  year  that  their  number  is  published.  The 
first  newspaper  notice  of  the  Society  is  found  in  The 
New-York  Gazette;  and  the  Weekly  Mercury  for  De- 
cember 30th  as  follows : 

PUBLIC  NOTICE  is  hereby  given  to  the  Members  of  the 
Union  Library  Society  of  New  York,  and  to  all  others  who 
may  choose  to  be  concerned  therein,  That  the  Library  Room 
will  be  opened  at  the  House  of  Captain  John  Berrien,  at  Bur- 
Hng's-SHp,  on  Tuesday  the  Seventh  of  January  next,  at  3 
o'clock  in  the  Afternoon  of  the  same  Day;  where  new  Sub- 
scriptions are  taken  in,  and  printed  Articles  of  the  Society  dis- 
tributed: The  Founders  of  this  Institution  flatter  themselves 
with  the  Prospect  of  a  speedy  Advancement  of  so  useful  an 
Undertaking,  as  they  conceive  it  founded  upon  Principals  of 
Freedom  and  general  Utihty. 

By  Order  of  the  Directors,     JOSHUA  WATSON,  Sec'ry. 

Further  particulars  concerning  the  Society  are  but 
fragmentary,  though  informing.  The  first  annual 
meeting  was  called  for  May  5, 1772,  "at  4  o'Clock  in  the 
Afternoon,  at  the  City-Hall,"  and  a  year  later  this 
fimction  took  place  in  "the  Library  Room"  at  ten  in  the 
morning,  but  the  result  of  neither  election  was  pub- 
lished. In  the  meantime  the  only  obtainable  statement 
regarding  the  size  of  the  collection  and  membership  had 
been  proclaimed  in  the  several  papers  of  January,  1773, 
the  books  numbering  "near  1000  volumes"  and  "contin- 
ually receiving  new  additions,"  while  there  were  140 
shareholders.  The  public  was  also  informed  that  the 
subscription  price  had  been  advanced  to  "the  small 
sum  of  thirty  shillings."  ^ 

*See  The  New  YorTc  Journal;  or,       1773,   and    The   New-Tork   Gazette, 
the    General    Advertiser,    Jan.     14,       Jan.  25,  1773. 


116     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

It  thus  appears  that  the  newer  institution,  in  member- 
ship at  least,  had  gone  far  ahead  of  the  Society  Library, 
whose  charter,  recorded  two  months  before,  enumer- 
ates fifty-nine  names.  Also,  the  next  reference  to  the 
Society  reveals  a  turn  of  affairs  far  from  pleasing  to 
friends  of  the  older  Library.  The  situation  is  best  de- 
scribed in  the  simple  words  of  the  original  source,  leav- 
ing the  rest  to  the  imagination.  In  the  minutes  of  the 
Common  Council  for  April  12, 1774,  is  found  this  entry: 

The  Petition  of  the  Members  of  the  union  Library  Society 
was  preferred  to  this  Board  and  Read,  praying  that  this 
Board  would  be  favourably  pleased  to  Indulge  them  with  the 
Eastermost  part  of  the  Room  in  which  the  books  of  the  New 
York  Societys  Library  are  Contained,  and  this  board  having 
Viewed  the  Same  unanimously  agreed  that  the  Same  be  Granted 
them,  they  being  at  the  Expence  of  a  doar,  and  Making  the 
Partitions  required.^ 

By  July,  the  necessary  alterations  and  "doar"  having 
doubtless  been  made,  the  Directors  published  a  notice  to 
members  that  the  collection  had  been  "removed  to  a 
Room  in  the  Old  City  Hall,  where  attendance  is  given 
at  the  usual  days  and  hours."  ^  Fortune  evidently  smil- 
ing upon  the  institution,  its  terms  were  again  advanced 
to  "forty  shillings  original  subscription  money,"  though 
ten  shillings  continued  to  be  the  yearly  charge.  All  the 
newspaper  extracts  give  the  name  of  Walter  Franklin 
as  President  and  show  that  Robert  Bowne  continued  to 
serve  as  Treasurer. 

But  no  lists  of  Directors  or  members  and  no  cata- 
logues are  known  to  have  been  printed,  nor,  seemingly, 

^  Minutes  of  the  Common  Council,  '  The  New  York  Journal;  or,  the 

VIII,  24-25.  General  Advertiser,  July  28,  1774. 


THE  UNION  LIBRARY  SOCIETY  117 

have  any  stray  volumes  survived  the  Revolution,  when 
the  Union  Library  Society,  in  company  with  other  Li- 
braries of  the  city,  suffered  irretrievable  ruin  in  the 

\^iX^  I'^-a-^  cwl:^^■  lis-  Gortj^Vv^^A  Lc^ 

/CC\r\j:>An    C-v^  {QO^rJieit^t^S^  i  Cvi^  |<fev^  CtT^^v^   \A.eaJtA^  14^ 
Entry  (reduced)  in  Common  Council  minutes,  April  12, 1774.    See  pp.  81, 116. 

general  dereliction.  One  valiant  but  vain  attempt,  so 
far  as  known,  was  made  to  rehabihtate  the  Society  some 
years  after  the  war,  as  evidenced  by  the  following  inser- 
tion in  The  Daily  Advertiser  for  December  21,  1791 :    | 

NOTICE  is  hereby  given  to  the  subscribers  of  the  Union  Li- 
brary, (which  was  established  prior  to  the  late  war)  that 
some  business  of  importance,  requiring  attention,  they  are  re- 
quested to  meet  on  the  evening  of  the  23d  inst.  at  six  o'clock,  at 
Crosbie's  Tavern,  in  Water  street,  between  Peck  and  Beekman 
slip,  where  punctual  attendance  is  desired. 

JOHN  MURRAY, 
In  behalf  of  the  Trustees. 

The  meeting,  if  held,  was  not  reported  in  the  papers, 
so  that  all  hope  of  a  restoration  or  renewal  was  prob- 


118     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

ably  abandoned.  Thus  all  that  remains  to-day  to  bear 
witness  to  a  once  prosperous  Library  is  the  little  old 
discolored  prospectus  of  the  Union  Library  Society, 
now  treasured  by  its  successful  rival,  the  New  York 
Society  Library. 


Summary  and  Conclusion 

Briefly  reviewing  the  history  of  the  efforts  to  establish 
an  institutional  Library  in  Colonial  New  York,  we  find 
that  no  fewer  than  six  attempts  were  made  toward  that 
end,  exclusive  of  the  purely  commercial  Circulating  Li- 
braries, as  follows : 

1.  The  Trinity  Parish  Library,  founded  in  1698  by 
the  Bishop  of  London  through  the  instrumentality  of 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  Bray,  and  reenf  orced  by  small  ad- 
ditions from  the  same  sources  and  by  later  private  dona- 
tions. So  far  as  the  vestry  minutes  reveal,  on  its  almost 
complete  destruction  by  fire  in  1776,  it  could  hardly 
have  comprised  over  450  volumes,  some  of  which  were 
saved.  The  only  books  of  this  collection  known  to  have 
survived  are  now  in  the  Library  of  the  General  Theolog- 
ical Seminary,  with  the  single  exception  of  the  old 
Clarendon  history,  preserved  in  the  Society  Library. 

2.  The  Sharpe  Collection,  given  in  1713-1715  by 
Chaplain  John  Sharpe  for  a  "Publick  Library."  Never 
securing  an  independent  existence,  it  remained  in  the 
hands  of  private  individuals  until  (probably)  joined 
with  the  Corporation  Library  in  1730.  In  some  way,  as 
above  conjectured,  the  majority  of  its  238  volumes  sur- 
vived the  Revolution  and  are  now  to  be  seen  in  the 
Society  Library. 


SUMMARY  AND  CONCLUSION  119 

3.  The  Corporation  Library,  New  York's  first  real 
Public  Circulating  Library,  originally  the  private  col- 
lection of  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Millington,  an  English 
clergyman,  who  bequeathed  it  to  the  Society  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  by  which  Society  the  books, 
numbering  1642  volumes,  were  given  to  the  city  of  New 
York.  Arriving  in  1730,  they  were  kept  in  the  City 
Hall,  undergoing  successive  fluctuations  of  usefulness 
and  desuetude,  until  scattered  by  the  British  troops  in 
1776. 


Label  (reduced)  on  second  volume  of  Clarendon  history  (1711), 
now  in  Society  Library.    See  pp.  20,  62,  118. 


4.  The  New  York  Society  Library,  founded  in  1754 
and  incorporated  in  1772  as  a  Pubhc  Subscription  Cir- 
culating Library  by  a  nimaber  of  well-to-do,  enterpris- 
ing citizens.  Receiving  immediate  and  gratifying 
support,  and  constantly  enlarged  by  consignments  of 
imported  books,  it  was  in  a  flourishing  state  when  para- 
lyzed by  the  approach  and  ravages  of  war.  Practically 
exterminated  by  the  atrocious  vandalism  of  the  British 
troops,  scarcely  a  volume  of  its  pre-Revolutionary  col- 
lection is  known  to  have  survived  save  the  Sharpe  books, 
which,  as  part  of  the  Corporation  Library,  were  for- 
merly in  its  care.    Its  Catalogue  of  1773,  the  last  issued 


120     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

before  the  war,  enumerates  1291  volumes,  increased  by 
later  purchases  to  1500  at  least. 

5.  The  Library  of  King's  College,  from  its  nature 
scarcely  more  public  than  the  Parish  Library,  was  estab- 
lished in  1757  through  a  bequest  of  the  private  library  of 
Joseph  Murray,  Esq.  It  had  received  sundry  gifts  of 
books  from  the  S.  P.  G.  and  other  sources  up  to  the  time 
of  its  removal,  in  1776,  to  the  City  Hall,  where  it  also 
met  with  destruction.  Its  extent  is  not  known  at  all,  but 
probably  approximated  2000  volumes. 

6.  The  Union  Library  Society  of  New  York,  called 
into  being  in  1771,  too  late  to  secure  a  large  collection 
within  the  succeeding  fateful  five  years,  though  its  ad- 
vertisement of  "near  1000  volumes"  bespeaks  its  energy 
and  growing  importance. 

Only  one  printed  statement  has  come  down  as  to  the 
total  number  of  volumes  at  the  time  of  dispersion,  but  it 
is  so  plainly  an  exaggeration  or  a  mistake,  that  it  cannot 
be  considered  at  all  seriously  as  it  stands.  Justice  Jones 
says  that  the  British  soldiers  stole  from  the  City  Hall, 
besides  the  King's  College  collection,  "all  the  books  be- 
longing to  the  subscription  library,  as  also  of  a  valuable 
library  which  belonged  to  the  Corporation,  the  whole 
consisting  of  not  less  than  60,000  volumes."^  One  of 
these  ciphers  must  be  a  typographical  error,  for  6000  is 
the  more  probable  figure  for  the  combined  assortment. 

Of  these  six  collections,  then,  all  were  prostrated  by 
the  war.  Of  two  of  them,  the  Union  Library  Society 
and  the  Corporation  Library,  not  a  vestige  has  survived. 
Of  two  others,  the  Sharpe  Collection  and  the  Trinity 

*  Thomas  Jones.     History  of  New  York  during  the  Revolutionary  War. 

Vol.  I,  p.  136. 


SUMMARY  AND  CONCLUSION  121 

Parish  Library,  the  former  is  by  far  the  better  pre- 
served, but  it  plainly  has  never,  at  any  stage  of  its 
career,  been  a  working  Library,  while  the  latter  lives  to- 
day only  in  a  few  fragments.  The  only  ones  that  arose 
from  the  ashes  of  their  former  selves,  the  New  York  So- 
ciety Library  and  the  King's  (Colmnbia)  College  Li- 
brary, were  forced  to  make  a  wholly  fresh  start  in  life, 
the  few  relics  of  their  early  collections  not  being  restored 
for  many  years.  A  handful  of  the  King's  College  books 
are  preserved  in  the  Library  of  Columbia  University  to- 
day, while  the  Society  Library  can  show  but  two  books, 
besides  the  Clarendon  history  and  the  Sharpe  Collection, 
that  are  of  undoubted  Colonial  Library  ownership. 

From  this  consideration  of  the  Library  in  Colonial 
New  York,  the  reader  will  not  turn  with  any  great  de- 
gree of  pride  in  the  general  cultural  attainments  of  the 
capital  city  of  the  province,  let  alone  evidences  of  Li- 
brary science.  And  yet  the  facts  of  the  case  beUe  the 
statement  in  Grahame's  history  already  quoted,^  that 
"the  great  bulk  of  the  people  were  strangers  even  to  the 
first  rudiments  of  science  and  cultivation,  till  the  era  of 
the  American  Revolution."  For  all  through  the  Eng- 
hsh  colonial  period  one  finds  traces  of  increasing  cultiva- 
tion and  refinement.  As  far  back  as  1668,  Col.  Francis 
Lovelace,  the  second  English  governor,  is  said  to  have 
written  home:  "I  find  some  of  these  people  have  the 
breeding  of  courts,  and  I  cannot  conceive  how  such  is 
acquired."^  Still  earlier,  in  1643,  the  "Inventory  of  the 
personal  property  of  the  Widow  Bronck  at  Emaus" 
enumerates  over  fifty  books  and  pamphlets,  the  collection 
of  "the  late  Jonas  Bronck."^    Moreover,  there  are  in  the 

^  Swpra  p.  30.  ^  But  see  p.  32n;^. 

» N.  T.  Col.  Docs.,  vol.  XIV,  p.  42. 


122     THE  LIBRARY  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK 

New  York  Public  Library  to-day  several  volumes  that 
once  formed  a  part  of  the  personal  collection  of  the  Rev. 
John  Miller,  chaplain  at  the  fort  from  1692  to  1695. 

Governors  Hunter  and  Burnet  were  themselves  own- 
ers of  libraries  and  scholarly  in  their  tastes,  while  Gov- 
ernor Montgomerie,  though  not  so  regarded,  left  a 
library  of  about  1400  volumes/  Among  the  colonists, 
furthermore,  there  were  all  along  men  of  literary  ap- 
preciation, with  their  own  private  collections:  for  ex- 
ample. Col.  Lewis  Morris,  Robert  EUiston,  James  De 
Lancey,  William  Smith,  James  Alexander,  Cadwal- 
lader  Golden,  Joseph  Murray,  David  Clarkson  and 
others.^  Such  was  the  type  of  men  who  not  only  per- 
ceived the  permanent  value  of  a  Public  Library  but  gave 
to  their  ideas  enduring  embodiment  in  the  form  of  the 
New  York  Society  Library,  whose  history  is  now  to  be 
related. 

*See  notice  in  The  New-York  Oa-  return  of  volumes  belonging  thereto: 

zette  in  May,  1732,  advertising  its  e.g.,  John  Pintard  (the  elder)  asks 

sale.  for  the  borrowed  books  of  William 

^  Executors   of   estates   sometimes  Searle,  deceased,  in  The  Gazette  and 

advertised  in  the  newspapers  for  the  Post-Boy,  Nov.,  1747. 


THE  FOUNDING  OF  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY,  1754 

IN  the  spring  of  1754,  when  the  New  York  Society- 
Library  first  drew  breath,  the  position  held  by  what 
is  now  the  United  States  in  world  affairs  was  truly 
insignificant.  Regarded  and  treated  chiefly  as  ap- 
pendages to  the  British  crown,  restricted  in  commerce, 
and  with  inventive  and  mechanical  instincts  kept  in 
leash,  the  colonies  were  indeed  but  scattered  "planta- 
tions," chnging  closely  to  the  Atlantic  seaboard.  Num- 
bering all  told  only  about  1,370,000  souls,  or  less  than  a 
third  of  the  present  population  of  New  York  city  alone, 
the  English  colonists,  furthermore,  differed  as  widely  in 
their  institutional  life  as  in  their  geographical  location. 
Yet  in  spite  of  all  this  and  their  primitive  means  of 
intercourse,  the  idea  of  nationality  was  already  begin- 
ning to  find  expression. 

Across  the  water,  the  reign  of  old  George  the  Second 
had  still  more  than  six  years  to  run,  while  America's 
future  "tyrant"  was  but  a  lad  of  fifteen,  with  traits  of 
temperament  all  unguessed.  On  the  decaying  French 
throne  lolled  Louis  the  Well  Beloved,  whose  ill-starred 
successor  was  yet  to  see  the  light  this  same  year;  and 
over  a  twelvemonth  was  to  pass  before  the  tragic  name 

128 


124  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

of  Marie  Antoinette  would  become  a  household  term  at 
the  Austrian  court,— in  their  very  cradles  innocent  vic- 
tims of  that  unnatural  state  alliance  formed  to  crush  the 
great  Frederick.  AU  Europe  was  taking  a  moment's 
breath  before  plunging  into  the  Seven  Years'  War, 
from  which  Prussia  was  to  emerge  a  power. 

As  landmarks  in  the  progress  of  the  arts  of  peace,  it 
will  be  recalled  that  only  a  year  earlier  the  British  Mu- 
seum had  been  founded,  and  that  not  long  afterward 
Dr.  Johnson  published  his  famous  dictionary.  In  the 
new  world,  too,  significant  signs  of  cultm-e  were  not 
lacking.  Already  four  colleges.  Harvard,  William  and 
Mary,  Yale,  and  Princeton,  were  in  existence ;  and  within 
a  few  months  still  a  fifth  was  to  be  chartered  in  close 
proximity  to  the  new  Library— King's  College,  known 
ever  since  the  Revolution  as  Columbia. 

The  year  1754  is  notable  in  American  annals.  It 
marks  the  outbreak  of  the  fiercest  and  fortunately  the 
last  of  the  intercolonial  struggles,  the  French  and  In- 
dian War,  whose  chief  benefits  to  the  English  provin- 
cials, besides  the  prestige  of  final  victory,  were  their 
experience  in  cooperation  and  their  training  for  that 
sterner  and  more  momentous  conflict,  of  which  few  had 
so  much  as  dreamed.  At  the  celebrated  Albany  Con- 
gress, opened  in  June  by  Lieutenant-Governor  De  Lan- 
cey,  Benjamin  Franklin  submitted  his  Plan  of  Union, 
so  clever  that  it  was  rejected  by  both  the  colonies  and 
the  home  government  for  the  advantages  supposably 
given  the  other  side.  And  it  was  in  an  early  episode  of 
the  war  that  a  young  Virginia  colonel  at  Fort  Necessity 
was  learning  lessons  in  patience  and  self-reliance,  and 
undergoing  a  discipline,  that  in  after  years  were  justly 
to  earn  for  him  the  title,  "Father  of  his  Country." 


GROWTH  OF  NEW  YORK  CITY  125 

None  of  the  colonies  showed  a  bolder  front  or  greater 
foresight  in  preparing  for  this  contest  than  New  York. 
Its  energetic  executive,  James  De  Lancey,  as  a  native 
of  the  province  was  the  better  able  to  discern  the  various 
needs  and  perils  of  the  hour.  His  reconunendations 
found  full  favor  with  the  Lords  of  Trade,  who  approved 
his  view  of  New  York  city,  as  "in  all  respects  the  most 
proper  place  for  a  general  Magazine  of  Arms  and 
Military  stores."^  As  it  was  the  provincial  capital 
throughout  the  colonial  era,  there  consequently  existed  a 
close  association  between  the  two  governing  boards. 
Often  the  mayor  was  appointed  to  the  governor's  coun- 
cil, whose  members  frequently  mingled  with  assembly- 
men and  common  councilmen  in  the  corridors  of  the 
City  Hall. 

By  this  time  New  York  may  fairly  be  said  to  have  at- 
tained a  well-defined  organization.  Granted  a  nominal 
charter  by  Director  Stuyvesant  in  1653,  the  city,  ever 
since  the  arrival  of  Governor  Andros,  in  1674,  had  been 
ruled  under  the  English  municipal  system,  with  such 
modifications  as  changing  conditions  brought  about.  A 
truly  distinctive  character  had  gradually  come  into  being 
from  the  very  composition  of  the  community;  in  earliest 
times  cosmopolitan  tendencies  were  pronounced,  and 
before  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  city's 
population  was  claimed  to  include  well-nigh  a  score  of 
nationalities.  These  various  elements  had  fused  harmo- 
niously at  length,  a  circumstance  serving  to  counteract 
that  spirit  of  provincialism  so  natural  to  colonial  life. 

Then,  as  now,  and  in  fact  throughout  its  history,  the 
chief  resource  of  the  city  was  its  commercial  acumen. 
In  the  words  of  a  contemporary  historian.  New  York 

^N.  Y.  Col.  Docs.,  VI,  1016. 


126  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

was  "the  Metropolis  and  grand  Mart  of  the  Province,'* 
commanding  "by  its  commodious  Situation  . . .  also  all  the 
Trade  of  the  Western  Part  of  Connecticut  and  that  of 
East  Jersey."  "  'No  season/  "  he  quotes,  "  'prevents 
our  Ships  from  launching  into  the  Ocean.  During  the 
greatest  Severity  of  Winter,  an  equal,  unrestrained. 
Activity  runs  through  all  Ranks,  Orders,  and  Employ- 
ments.' "^  Trading  monopolies  and  the  rich  harvests 
reaped  from  privateering  had  laid  the  foundations  of 
many  a  local  fortune  and  had  brought  prosperity  to  the 
city. 

But  for  all  that,  New  York  was  a  smaller  place  than 
either  Philadelphia  or  Boston.  Barely  12,000  people 
could  be  counted  within  its  gates,  then  not  far  apart,  for 
little  land  had  as  yet  been  reclaimed  from  the  rivers, 
while  the  Fields,  the  present  City  Hall  Park,  lay  well 
outside  the  inhabited  portion. 

In  those  days,  as  for  over  half  a  century  before,  and 
for  as  many  years  to  follow,  the  City  Hall  stood  in 
Wall  street  at  the  head  of  Broad.  Here  were  discussed 
all  matters  relating  to  the  welfare  of  the  community. 
It  will  therefore  be  of  interest  to  regard  briefly  the  con- 
cerns of  the  city  fathers,  at  a  time  when  no  salary  but 
great  honor  attached  to  the  office  of  alderman,  while  to 
be  mayor  was  accounted  an  imperishable  dignity.  For 
the  most  trustworthy  source  of  information  one  should 
turn  to  the  old  minutes  of  the  Common  Council,  so  care- 
fully kept  by  the  city  clerks  throughout  the  hundred 
years  ending  with  the  British  occupation  in  1776. 

At  a  glance,  one  is  impressed  with  their  alertness  and 
attention  to  civic  interests.    First  in  importance  at  that 

*  William  Smith.  The  History  of  1757.  P.  188.  The  author  does  not 
the  Province  of  New-York.    London,       give  the  source  of  his  quotation. 


CIVIC  LIFE  IN  COLONIAL  NEW  YORK         127 

time,  naturally  enough,  would  come  preparation  for 
suitable  defense.  Not  only  were  constables  paid  for 
"Severall  Nights  and  Days  Watchings,"  but  masters  of 
all  incoming  vessels  were  notified  to  report  within  two 
hours  of  arrival  the  names  of  strangers  carried  as  pas- 
sengers, under  penalty  of  forty  shillings  for  each 
default.  A  "thousand  stand  of  arms"  was  ordered  from 
England,  each  musket  to  be  "fixed  with  a  Bayonet,  one 
Catridge  box  and  a  Belt."  Again,  all  freemen  were  to 
be  taxed  for  an  appropriation  of  not  above  .£3500  for  a 
new  barracks  in  the  Fields,  to  be  built  by  "the  most 
principall  Carpenters,"  to  accommodate  800  men;  upon 
completion  it  was  regularly  kept  supplied  with  firewood, 
candles  and  straw.  As  an  expedient  for  raising  funds, 
the  Common  Council— as  had  been  done  in  the  case  of 
founding  King's  College— petitioned  the  assembly  for 
leave  to  start  a  lottery,  "beeing  apprehensive  of  a  Warr 
with  France." 

To  matters  of  the  general  weal  a  similar  devotion 
seems  to  have  been  shown.  New  streets  were  laid  out 
from  time  to  time,  while  some  of  the  travel-worn  thor- 
oughfares would  be  ordered  paved  or  leveled.  Fines 
were  exacted  of  persons  refusing  to  serve  in  elective 
positions,  a  special  exception  being  made  in  the  case  of 
one  constable-elect,  Caleb  Shrieve,  "screaned  by  being  a 
Quaquer."  The  poorhouse.  City  Hall  and  other  public 
buildings  were  kept  in  constant  repair,  and  a  pest-house 
and  a  new  jail  were  in  process  of  erection.  One  citizen 
was  regularly  paid  for  "taking  Care  of  the  City 
Lamps,"  another  received  quarterly  instalments  for 
services  as  "publick  Whipper,"  still  a  third  was  desig- 
nated as  "Publick  Inviter  to  ifuneralls,"— this  last 
functionary  plainly  showing  title  to  Dutch  origin. 


128  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

For  over  a  score  of  years  a  fire  department  had  been 
in  operation,  the  firemen  receiving  individual  appoint- 
ment from  the  Common  Comicil.  For  precaution's 
sake  new  wells  were  sunk  in  the  streets,  as  had  long  been 
the  custom,  and  a  special  ordinance  forbade  the  storing 
of  turpentine  or  pitch  within  the  corporate  limits. 

Frequent  regulations  attest  to  the  watchfulness  of 
the  city's  guardians  over  the  health  of  their  charge, 
stringent  laws  calling  for  cleanliness  in  streets  and  mar- 
ket places.  One  ordinance  in  particular  prohibited  the 
selling  of  oysters  between  May  15th  and  the  middle  of 
August,  thus  showing  familiarity  with  the  phenomena 
of  the  months  without  the  "r" !  At  a  time  when  small- 
pox was  reported  as  rampant  in  Philadelphia,  the  Am- 
boy  boat  was  ordered  held  up  for  inspection,  Bedlow's 
Island  being  the  quarantine  station. 

In  the  direction  of  public  charities  a  beginning  had 
long  been  made.  The  city's  poor  and  destitute  received 
attention  from  regularly  chosen  church  wardens  and 
city  vestrymen,  officials  quite  distinct  from  those  of 
Trinity  parish.  Physicians  were  summoned  at  the 
Corporation's  expense  to  attend  sick  debtors  or  other 
prisoners  in  their  durance. 

There  was  greater  opportunity  for  simple  recreation 
in  those  days;  people  took  life  more  leisurely  than  in  the 
hurry- worry  of  the  present  age.  Citizens  then  had  their 
out-of-door  sports  close  at  hand;  and  their  social  diver- 
sions resembled  nothing  so  much  as  great  family  gather- 
ings, for  the  local  gentry  were  nearly  all  related,  by 
marriage  at  least.  Political  discussions  at  taverns  and 
coffee-houses  were  doubtless  as  convincing  as  any  held 
to-day,  though  possibly  more  moderate,  as  the  practice 
of  dueling  tended  to  set  a  guard  on  men's  lips.    Smith 


FORMS  OF  SOCIAL  ENJOYMENT  129 

the  historian  characterizes  New  York  as  "one  of  the 
most  social  Places  on  the  Continent,"  where  "the  Men 
collect  themselves  into  weekly  Evening  Clubs,"  and 
"the  Ladies,  in  Winter,  are  frequently  entertained  either 
at  Concerts  of  Musick  or  Assemblies,  and  make  a  very 
good  Appearance."^ 

For  a  charming  glimpse  of  the  customary  round  of 
outings  as  the  seasons  changed,  behold  the  following  pic- 
ture from  the  journal  of  an  EngHsh  traveler :  ^ 

Their  amusements  are  .  .  .  balls,  and  sleighing  expeditions  in 
the  winter ;  and,  in  the  summer,  going  in  parties  upon  the  water, 
and  fishing ;  or  making  excursions  into  the  country.  There  are 
several  houses,  pleasantly  situated  upon  East  river,  near  New 
York,  where  it  is  common  to  have  turtle-feasts:  these  happen 
once  or  twice  in  a  week.  Thirty  or  forty  gentlemen  and  ladies 
meet  and  dine  together,  drink  tea  in  the  afternoon,  fish  and 
amuse  themselves  till  evening,  and  then  return  home  in  Italian 
chaises,  (the  fashionable  carriage  in  this  and  most  parts  of 
America,  .  .  .  )  a  gentleman  and  lady  in  each  chaise.  In  the 
way  there  is  a  bridge,  about  three  miles  distant  from  New  York, 
which  you  always  pass  over  as  you  return,  called  the  Kissing- 
bridge ;  where  it  is  a  part  of  the  etiquette  to  salute  the  lady  who 
has  put  herself  under  your  protection. 

All  these  forms  of  enjoyment  were  of  course  made 
possible  only  by  the  underlying  commercial  prosperity. 
Numerous  and  powerful  as  were  the  merchants  of  New 
York,  however,  there  was  yet  another  class  of  society 
even  more  instrumental  in  lending  weight  and  distinc- 
tion to  the  advancing  community.  The  commanding 
influence  of  the  legal  fraternity,  in  shaping  a  colonial 

^  William  Smith.    History  of  New-       Travels  through  the  Middle  Settle- 
York.    London,  1757.    P.  211.  ments  in  North  America.     Pp.  738- 
*  The  Rev.  Andrew  Burnaby,  D.D.       739.    See  p.  S8n. 


130  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRABY 

attitude  toward  arbitrary  policies  of  the  home  govern- 
ment during  the  stirring  times  then  beginning,  was  as 
freely  admitted  by  the  British  ministry  as  by  its  agents 
on  this  side  of  the  ocean.  And  the  leaders  of  the  New 
York  bar  of  that  day  stood  second  to  none  in  learning, 
in  forensic  ability,  or  in  their  patriotic  breadth  of  view. 

From  such  a  people  knowledge  was  bound  to  receive 
recognition.  Amongst  enterprising  men  of  affairs 
there  were  a  number  of  distinctly  scholarly  minds,  be- 
sides many  others  thirsting  for  literary  advantages  or 
plain  general  information,  for  themselves  and  particu- 
larly for  their  families.  This  instinct  had  been  developed 
in  the  case  of  wealthier  citizens  to  the  extent  of  some 
notable  private  collections  of  books,  as  already  men- 
tioned.^ To  the  exclusive  cultivation  of  this  spirit, 
however  laudable  in  itself,  may  be  attributed  in  some 
degree  the  prevailing  apathy  hitherto  shown  toward 
maintaining  a  Public  Library. 

Yet  from  a  coterie  of  these  very  persons  came  the 
impetus  and  guidance  that  carried  to  a  successful  issue 
the  plan  of  establishing  a  Subscription  Library.  Smith's 
history  tells  how  "the  project  was  started  at  an  evening 
convention  of  a  few  private  friends,"  with  the  aim  of 
"promoting  a  spirit  of  inquiry  among  the  people."^  As 
likely  as  not  the  little  gathering  was  held  at  the  home  of 
the  Hon.  James  Alexander,  a  renowned  place  of  meet- 
ing to  discuss  current  affairs.  The  same  printed  source 
gives  likewise  the  names  of  these  conspirers  for  good  as 
follows:  Philip  Livingston,  WiUiam  Alexander,  Rob- 
ert R.  Livingston,  William  Livingston,  John  Morin 
Scott,  "and  one  other  person."     This  last,  with  a  rea- 

^  See  p.  122.  the    Late    Province    of    New-York, 

^  William  Smith.    The  History  of       New  York,  1830.    Vol.  II,  p.  207. 


THE  LIBRARY  PROJECT  STARTED  131 

sonable  amount  of  certainty,  may  be  pronounced  to  have 
been  the  author  himself,  for  William  Smith,  Jr.,  was 
boon  companion  to  several  of  these  men,  and  he  mani- 
festly writes  as  one  having  authority. 

Their  ultimate  and  liberal  aim,  our  chronicler  adds, 
comprehended  "an  incorporation  by  royal  charter  and 
the  erection  of  an  edifice,  at  some  future  day,  for  a 
Museum  and  an  Observatory,  as  well  as  a  Library."^ 
Athwart  this  pleasing  picture  there  darts  a  reminiscent 
gleam  of  poor  John  Sharpe's  unrealized  yearnings.  Is 
not  that  optimist,  therefore,  vindicated  at  last  in  this 
approaching  consummation  of  his  cherished  designs? 
And  is  he  not  freed  forthwith  from  any  charge  of  fanat- 
icism, when  active  men  of  affairs  follow  his  lead,  and 
even  dream  of  founding  also  these  additional  public 
benefits,  unattainable  for  years  to  come  ? 

But  these  dreamers,  if  you  will,  were  not  content  with 
seeing  visions.  They  began  earnestly  to  embody  their 
ideas  in  living  form,  and  they  were  of  just  the  creative 
spirit  to  breathe  the  breath  of  life  into  any  undertaking. 
Ardent,  young, — ranging  from  twenty-five  to  thirty- 
eight  years  of  age,— but  well  disciplined,  they  were  the 
acknowledged  leaders  of  an  association  called  the  Whig 
Club,  a  center  of  opposition  to  the  royalist  or  govern- 
ment party.  Of  good  birth  themselves,  they  had  ready 
access  to  persons  of  standing  in  the  conmiunity.  The 
historian  records  laconically  their  initial  steps:  "To  en- 
gage all  parties  in  the  subscription,  it  was  carried  first  to 
the  lieutenant-governor  and  the  council,"^  nearly  all  of 
whom  gave  prompt  signature,  the  Library  records  show» 

At  this  point  it  is  fitting  to  learn  something  about  the 
six  young  men  who  had  set  this  abiding  work  in  opera- 

^  Ibid.,  p.  208.  2  Ibid.,  pp.  20T-208. 


132  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

tion.  All  were  destined  to  lives  of  eminent  usefulness 
and,  in  some  instances,  to  enduring  fame. 

Of  Philip  Livingston,  fourth  son  of  the  second  lord 
of  the  manor,  it  is  almost  enough  to  say  that  he  was  to  be 
a  signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  A  Yale 
graduate,  he  turned  his  attention  to  business  and  ac- 
quired a  handsome  fortune,  which  he  freely  offered  to 
sustain  the  credit  of  his  country.  Throughout  his  busy 
life  he  devoted  himself  to  public  interests,  serving  as  an 
alderman  for  eight  years ;  as  a  member  of  the  assembly, 
where  he  was  speaker  for  a  time;  and  as  a  delegate  to 
the  First  and  Second  Continental  Congresses,  of  which 
latter  body  he  was  a  member  at  the  time  of  his  death. 
Moreover,  religious  matters  were  close  to  his  heart; 
throughout  his  life  he  maintained  allegiance  to  the  Re- 
formed Dutch  Church,  serving  that  denomination  as 
deacon  and  as  elder  for  years.  Truly  the  house  founded 
by  the  original  Robert,  the  Albany  fur  trader  and  pro- 
moter, gained  greatly  in  public  esteem  in  its  third 
generation.  Talents  and  resources,  such  as  the  first  lord 
of  the  manor  had  applied  to  his  own  purposes,  were 
generously  placed  at  the  disposal  of  their  fellow-beings 
by  not  a  few  of  his  descendants. 

William  Livingston,  a  younger  brother,  was  also 
graduated  from  Yale  College,  where  he  took  highest 
honors.  He  studied  law  with  James  Alexander  and 
William  Smith  in  turn,  at  the  same  time  imbibing  their 
political  ideas.  But  he  was  original  and  forceful,  soon 
advancing  to  the  front  of  his  chosen  calling,  though 
bitterly  denounced  by  opponents  as  a  "Presbyterian 
lawyer,"— a  term  implying  seditious  views  toward  the 
government,  as  well  as  indicating  his  denominational 
affiliation,  for  at  this  time  he  was  a  trustee  of  that 


CHIEF  MOVERS  IN  THE  ENTERPRISE        133 

church.  He  compelled  attention  and  won  renown  as 
the  author  of  numerous  brilliant  pamphlet  articles,  pub- 
lished imder  the  titles,  "The  Independent  Reflector" 
and  "The  Watch-Tower."  Although  he  took  up  his 
residence  in  New  Jersey  in  1760,  he  retained  an  active 
interest  in  the  Library,  appreciation  of  which  was  shown 
by  his  continued  election  as  Trustee  from  its  foundation 
until  1773,  or  nineteen  years.  To  prove  his  sincerity  in 
recommending  abolition  he  freed  all  his  own  slaves. 
Representing  his  adopted  province  and  state  in  all  three 
Continental  Congresses,  and  in  the  Constitutional  Con- 
vention of  1787  as  well,  he  ranks  as  one  of  the  most 
eminent  patriots  and  statesmen  of  New  Jersey,  of  which 
he  was  the  first  governor  imder  independence. 

Closely  identified  with  the  brothers  in  this  enterprise 
was  their  cousin,  Robert  R.  Livingston,  third  of  the 
name  in  the  direct  line.  Achieving  eminence  at  the  pro- 
vincial bar,  he  was  appointed  a  judge  in  admiralty,  and 
for  the  last  twelve  years  of  his  life  was  an  associate 
justice  of  the  supreme  court.  As  a  delegate  to  the 
Stamp  Act  Congress,  he  opposed  the  compulsory  ac- 
ceptance of  the  hateful  paper;  but  he  showed  conser- 
vatism on  the  question  of  American  independence. 
Reputed  the  wealthiest  land  owner  in  New  York,  he 
died  in  1775,  before  it  was  necessary  to  declare  for  one 
side  or  the  other.  In  church  affiliations,  Anglican, 
though  a  Whig  in  politics,  his  services  as  a  vestryman  of 
Trinity  parish  ceased  only  with  his  death.  Judge  Liv- 
ingston's trusteeship  in  the  Library  covered  eighteen 
years,  from  the  beginning,  and  was  perpetuated  in  that 
of  his  still  more  distinguished  son  and  namesake. 

Mention  has  several  times  been  made  of  the  historian, 
William  Smith,  Jr.    For  years  a  law  partner  of  Wil- 


IM  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

liam  Livingston,  and  associated  with  his  personal 
friends  in  local  politics,  a  man  of  attainments  though  of 
strong  bias,  he  also  was  to  find  a  parting  of  the  ways  on 
the  question  of  independence.  While  "all  his  sym- 
pathies were  with  the  individual  rebel,  none  were  with 
the  rebellion  that  severed  the  new  from  old  England." 
Before  this  occurred  he  had  been  a  useful  member  of 
society  as  lawyer  and  jurist,  and  as  a  trustee  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church.  After  the  Revolution  he  continued 
allegiance  to  the  crown  in  Canada,  where  an  honorable 
career  was  in  store  for  him  as  chief  justice. 

Another  "Presbyterian  lawyer"— as  also  a  trustee  of 
that  church,  and  a  man  of  great  influence,  as  both  writer 
and  speaker— was  John  Morin  Scott.  For  some  years 
an  alderman  and  later  a  member  of  the  provincial  con- 
vention and  of  the  Continental  Congress,  as  also  of  the 
local  committee  of  safety,  he  was  no  less  full  of  martial 
ardor.  One  of  the  founders  of  the  famous  Sons  of 
Liberty,  he  acted  a  gallant  part  in  the  battle  of  Long 
Island,  retiring  from  the  war  as  brigadier-general. 
Thereafter  he  held  such  positions  of  honor  as  state 
senator,  member  of  Congress,  and  secretary  of  state  in 
New  York. 

The  last  but  by  no  means  the  least  significant  name  in 
this  little  group  is  that  of  William  Alexander,  son  of  the 
eminent  advocate  and  councilor,  James  Alexander,  and 
known  in  American  history  as  the  titular  Earl  of  Stirl- 
ing. Beginning  life  in  mercantile  pursuits,  he  was  made 
an  army  contractor  by  General  Shirley  and  later  became 
his  private  secretary.  At  an  early  age  he  was  appointed 
to  the  governor's  council  of  New  York  and  subsequently 
of  New  Jersey,  where,  like  his  brother-in-law,  William 
Livingston,  he  dwelt  in  considerable  state.     Well  in- 


EARLIEST  PRESS  NOTICE  135 

formed  on  literary  and  scientific  subjects,  a  member  of 
the  board  of  governors  of  King's  College,  he  was  also  a 
man  of  action;  for  he  played  a  distinguished  role  in  the 
Revolution,  participating  conspicuously  in  notable  en- 
gagements, for  which  services  he  was  rewarded  with  the 
thanks  of  Congress  on  several  occasions  and  with  a 
major-general's  commission.  Held  in  high  esteem  by 
Washington,  whom  he  was  said  greatly  to  resemble  in 
personal  appearance,  he  was  characterized  at  the  time  of 
his  death,  just  before  the  war  closed,  as  "possessed  of 
great  bravery,  perseverance  and  extraordinary  mihtary 
talent."^  By  birth  and  marriage  Lord  Stirling  was 
related  to  leading  houses  of  the  province.  It  is  a  family 
tradition  that  his  cultivated  mother.  Mistress  PoUy 
Spratt  Alexander,  in  her  strong  public  spirit  and  desire 
for  improvement,  had  suggested  the  Library  idea  to  her 
son  and  his  friends."^ 

This  was  early  in  March,  1754.  Within  little  more 
than  one  month  they  effected  an  organization,  chose  a 
board  of  Trustees,  and,  still  more  to  the  point,  raised  by 
private  subscription  a  sum  sufficiently  ample  to  sustain 
the  enterprise.  Its  first  press  notice  appeared  in  The 
New-York  Mercury  for  April  8th,  as  follows: 

A  Subscription  is  now  on  Foot,  and  carried  on  with  great  Spirit, 
in  order  to  raise  Money  for  erecting  and  maintaining  a  publick 
Library  in  this  City ;  and  we  hear  that  not  less  than  70  Gentle- 
men have  already  subscribed  Five  Pounds  Principal,  and  Ten 
Shillings  per  Annum,  for  that  Purpose.  We  make  no  doubt  but 
a  Scheme  of  this  Nature,  so  well  calculated  for  promoting  Lit- 

*  Elias  Boudinot,  President  of  the       132.     MS.  Archives,  Dept.  of  State, 
Continental    Congress,    to    General       Washington. 

Washington,   Philadelphia,   Jan.   29,  ^  Mrs.  John  King  Van  Rensselaer. 

1783.    "Letters  to  Washington,"  xcii.       The   Ooede    Vrouw   of  Mana-ha-ta. 

New  York,  1898.    P.  389. 


136  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

erature,  will  meet  with  due  Encouragement  from  all  who  wish  the 
Happiness  of  the  rising  Generation.^ 

A  considerable  number  of  citizens  having  become 
interested,  there  had  been  drawn  up  on  April  2d  the 
"Articles  of  the  Subscription  Roll  of  the  New 
York  Library,"  under  which  the  institution  was  to 
prosper  for  more  than  eighteen  years,  or  until  a  charter 
was  secured,  in  November,  1772.  Its  objects  are  an- 
nounced briefly  and  without  ostentation  in  these  simple 
phrases,— the  first  now  held  in  light  esteem,  though  then 
reserved  for  dignified  occsisions,— ^'Whereas  a  Publick 
Library  would  be  very  useful,  as  well  as  ornamental  to 
this  City  &  may  be  also  advantageous  to  our  intended 
College."  The  sentence  concludes  with  business-like 
directness:  "We  whose  Names  are  hereunto  subscribed, 
in  order  to  promote  the  Design  of  erecting  one  in  this 
City,  do  promise  to  pay  Five  Pounds  New  York  Cur- 
rency, each  on  the  first  Day  of  May  next  ensuing  the 
Date  hereof." 

They  further  agreed  to  a  yearly  assessment  of  ten 
shillings  and  to  an  annual  election  of  twelve  Trustees, 
to  be  chosen  from  subscribers  or  their  assigns  at  the  Ex- 
change in  Broad  street,  between  eleven  o'clock  and  noon 
on  the  last  Tuesday  in  April.  The  Trustees  were  em- 
powered to  appropriate  funds  toward  the  purchase  of 
books,  and  to  select  a  repository  for  them;  to  appoint  a 
"Library  Keeper"  at  a  "propper  Sallary";  to  regulate 
the  terms  of  loans;  and  "to  do  every  Thing  they  shall 
judge  necessary  to  erect,  preserve,  ornament  &  improve 
the  said  Library,"  under  clearly  outlined  directions. 

^  This  same  notice  was  printed  un-  prising  in  view  of  its  character,  even 

der  New  York  news  in  the  Philadel-  though    there   was    less    affinity   be- 

phia  papers  of  April  11th,  but  not  tween  those  two  towns. 
in  Boston  papers  at  all,  which  is  sur- 


REGULATIONS  OF  THE  NEW  LIBRARY       137 

Then  follow  fourteen  "Regulations"  for  the  govern- 
ment of  the  institution  and  the  guidance  of  its  Trustees. 
The  main  features  comprise  the  "Right  to  take  out  one 
Book  at  a  Time,"  with  the  stipulation,  foreign  to  mod- 


N  E  JV-Y  0  RK,  ^prilZ. 
_  ■-  A  Subfcripilon  is  aow  on  Foot,  and  carried  on  with  great  SpL-itj 
in  order  to  raifs  Money  for  ere£ling  and  lUiintaining  a  publick  Li- 
httry  in  this  City  ;  and  we  heir  that  i»t  kfs  than  70  Gentlemen 
have  already  fubfcribed  Fi^e  Pounds  Principal,  and  Ten  Shiiiings 
per  Annum,  for  that  Purpofe.  We  make  no  Doubt  but  a  Scheme 
oi  this  Nature,  fo  well  calculated  foe  promoting  Literature,  will 
meet  with  due  EncouragemsaC  from  ail  who  wiih  the  Happintrfa  cf 
the  Rifing  Generation. 

Laft  Tucfday  Moinir^jC^.  X50,  iQ  Counterfeit  Britifh Half- pence, 
was.felzed  ina  Houfein  this  City,  by  George  Harriibi^  Efqj  Sur- 
veyor and  Searcher  of  his  Majefty^s  Cuftoms.  [^Suih  jijfiduity'  a 
ibis,  in  Tnakittg  two  conJiderai>le  Heixures  •within  a  Fartniglii'i  lime^ 
•unlit  vje  trufty  he  an  iffc9ual  Step  towards  preventing  the  Importa' 
tien  of  Counterfeit  Copper  Halfpence  into  this  FroviviC,  f»  prtjudiciai 
to  the  Country  in  general,  end  the  fear  Trader  in  particular  ;  etral 
Vfi/l,  undoubtedly,  refleS  no  iefs  Honour  xm  one  fo  xeohus  for  the  Good 
of  the  Common  Weal,  than  Difbonour  Off  the  Pcrjon  or  Ferjons  who 
mcy  at  Tima  import  them,  contrary  to  the  expreft  iVorat  of  the  Ati  of 
Jiffimhly  of  this  Province,  lateJy  made  and  provided  in  ttfatJSghaif,^ 
Cufiote-Houft,  IfeW'Tcrk,  Jmiard  Entrtei, 

Sloop  Hening,  A.  Cuzsene  from  Jamaica.  Otutvardu  Sloop 
Littk  David.  J.  Pbitiofon  for  Newfoundland.  Sloop  Elizabeth,  C. 
Mitlcr  for  Virginia.  Brig  Fanny,  Edward  Kendriek  tor  Mevii, 
Sloop  Ann,  B.  Richards  for  Barbados.  Biig  William,  J.  Roome 
for  Liibon.  Snow  Mefopotamia,  A.  Rutgcit  torNew-Caftle.  Snow 
Charming  Sally,  T.  Wnite  for  Port  Dover.  Cleared,  Sloop  Ma- 
(Itr  Mafon,  J.  Crewr,  Sloop  Unity,-  Hczekieh  Sawyer,  and  Sloop 
Baubelor,  D.  Cox  to  Kova- Scotia*  Sfoop  Wrymouth,  J.Cooklin 
to  Boflon.  Biig  Elizabeth,  JofiasSmtrhto  V.  i^andi.  SioopKiog- 
Aon,  John  Ebbccs  to  Montj£{at,  Schooner  Hampton,  J.  Cramer  to 
Ant-gua.  Stcop  Dolphin,  .Ihomas  Remfcy  £0  jsmasca.  Brig  Ca- 
mus, A.  Brown  to  hXa&mtz*  Slcop  Sun>£e7,  A.  Hu/ittr  to  Giif* 
gow. 

First  press  notice  of  the  Society  Library.    The  Pennsylvania  Gazette, 
April  11,  1754  (facsimile  size).    See  pp.  135-136. 


ern  ways,  requiring  a  deposit  "in  Cash,  at  least  one  third 
more  than  the  value  of  it" ;  that  the  length  of  the  loan 
"be  proportioned  as  nearly  as  possible  to  the  Bulk  of 
the  Volumn,"  together  with  certain  penalties  for  delin- 
quents; and  that  the  majority  of  members  might,  at  any 
annual  meeting,  amend  the  instrument.    The  Trustees 


138  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

were  to  be  elected  by  ballot,  should  serve  "Gratis,"  and 
might  appoint  a  Treasurer,  "at  a  proper  Allowance  for 
his  Trouble,"  who,  however,  could  not  be  one  of  their 
number;  and  they  were  to  be  held  responsible  for  the 
financial  status  of  their  charge. 

Individual  shares  or  "rights"  might  be  bequeathed, 
inherited  or  alienated,  "as  of  any  other  Chattel";  but, 
no  matter  how  many  rights  he  might  possess,  each  sub- 
scriber was  to  have  only  one  vote.  It  is  interesting  to 
observe  how  the  term  "right"— meaning  a  share— has 
been  carefully  retained  to  the  present  day  as  one  of  the 
distinguishing  marks  of  the  Society  Library.  It  is  also 
of  interest  to  note,  retrospectively,  that  the  liberal  intent 
of  the  donors  of  the  Corporation  Library  was  here  per- 
petuated in  part,  by  the  provision  that  all  privileges,  in- 
cluding the  loan  of  books,  should  be  extended  to  any 
resident  of  the  province  at  large. 

On  the  eve  of  the  first  election  for  Trustees  this  notice, 
here  copied  from  The  New-York  Gazette:  or,  the 
Weekly  Post-Boy,  for  April  29th,  was  inserted  in  the 
current  newspapers : 


THE  GENTLEMEN,  who  are  Subscribers  to  the  PUB- 
LICK-LIBRARY,  which  is  to  be  erected  in  this  City,  are 
hereby  Notified,  that  To-morrow,  being  the  last  Tuesday 
in  April,  is  the  Day  appointed  by  the  Subscription  Articles  for 
their  Meeting ;  in  order  to  elect  Twelve  TRUSTEES,  who  are 
to  have  the  immediate  Care  and  Management  of  the  said  Library, 
for  the  Year  ensuing.  They  are  therefore  desired  to  convene  for 
that  Purpose,  To-morrow  morning  at  Eleven  o'Clock,  at  the 
EXCHANGE  Coffee-Room  in  Broad-Street.  As  it  will  be  the 
first  public  Transaction  of  the  Subscribers,  in  Advancement  of 
this  excellent  and  useful  Design,  it  is  hoped,  that  Gentlemen  will 
not  fail  to  give  a  very  general  Attendance. 


FIRST  ELECTION  OF  TRUSTEES  139 

Not  a  whisper  of  the  proceedings  at  this  first  ballot- 
ing for  Trustees  has  reached  our  ears.  It  is  perhaps  too 
much  to  expect  to  find  no  politics  in  the  affair,  consider- 
ing the  temper  of  the  six  originators;  and  especially  in 
view  of  the  fact  that  in  the  same  year  King's  College 
was  nearly  strangled  at  birth  by  sectarian  dissensions, 
with  their  underlying  political  motives.  That  there  was 
poUtics  in  this  election  is  made  very  plain  from  a  long 
article,  number  XXV  of  "The  Watch-Tower"  series,  in 
the  Mercury  for  May  12,  1755,  signed  "B."^ 

After  explaining  the  intent  of  the  founders  as  "well 
judging  that  an  Acquaintance  with  Books  would  tend  to 
unshackle  the  Minds  of  their  fellow  Subjects,"  the  out- 
burst proceeds  with  increasing  bitterness : 

No  sooner  were  the  Subscriptions  compleat,  and  a  Day  ap- 
pointed for  the  Election  of  Trustees,  than  a  dirty  Scheme  was 
concerted,  for  excluding  as  many  English  Presbyterians  as 
possible,  from  the  Trusteeship;  concerted,  not  by  Trinity 
Church  in  this  City,  but  by  some  of  her  unworthy  Members: 
Which  Distinction  is  here  carefuUy  taken,  to  prevent  those  con- 
tracted Bigots  from  misrepresenting  the  Sentiments  of  an 
Author,  who  for  the  Reasons  abovementioned,  holds  that,  and 
all  other  Protestant  Churches,  in  the  highest  Veneration.  This 
Scheme  a  certain  Gentleman  in  this  Province  undertook  to 
execute ;  and  by  his  Emissaries  dispersed  among  the  Subscribers 
a  Number  of  Copies  of  such  a  List  of  Trustees,  as  best  suited 
his  known  Humour  and  Inclination,  and  advised  many  of  them 
carefully  to  avoid  electing  any  Presbyterians  to  the  Trustee- 
ship. Strongly  prepossessed  in  favour  of  his  own  judicious 
Choice,  the  good  Man  doubtless  expected  it  would  be  submitted 
to  by  many  of  the  Subscribers  with  a  most  obsequious  Defer- 
ence.    How  well  his  Expectations  were  answered,  the  Event  of 

^Probably  the  Rev.  Aaron  Burr,       ciated   with  William   Livingston   in 
D.D.,    president    of   the    college    at       the  preparation  of  these  articles. 
Princeton,  for  he  was  closely  asso- 


140         THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

that  Election  will  best  determine.  Thus  much  however  is  cer- 
tain, that  in  Spite  of  his  utmost  Efforts,  the  Subscribers  were 
so  obstinatly  impartial,  as  to  chuse  Persons  who,  from  their 
Acquaintance  with  Literature,  they  imagined  were  able  to  make 
a  proper  Collection  of  Books. 

Nevertheless,  we  can  only  conjecture  whether  the 
elections  were  close,  whether  there  really  was  active 
rivalry  for  the  honor,  or  whether  some  of  the  nominees 
may  not  have  accepted  their  new  responsibilities  reluc- 
tantly, questioning  the  outcome.  The  gathering  itself, 
composed  of  representative  citizens,  met  in  the  new 
Exchange  at  the  foot  of  Broad  street,  and  was  probably 
as  large  as  often  assembled  for  any  purpose.  The  result 
bears  witness  to  the  intelligence  and  wisdom  of  the 
voters.  Of  the  twelve  gentlemen  chosen  to  the  first 
board  of  Trustees  of  the  Society  Library,  three  were 
founders,  Robert  R.  Livingston,  William  Livingston 
and  William  Alexander.  Upon  the  remaining  nine 
members  attention  will  next  be  directed,  to  learn  what 
manner  of  men  they  were,  these  guardians  over  the 
earliest  days  of  the  institution  we  behold  to-day,  time- 
honored  but  virile  and  full  of  promise.  In  response  to 
our  invocation  the  muse  of  history  will  now  simfmion 
them  one  at  a  time,  for  a  brief  and  reverent  review. 

First  among  these  twelve  apostles  of  culture  rises  the 
august  figure  of  his  Honor  James  De  Lancey,  Esquire, 
lieutenant-governor  of  the  province  of  New  York 
throughout  this  decade,  and  for  thirty  years  chief  justice 
of  the  supreme  court.  Scarcely  past  the  prime  of  life, 
handsome,  brilliant,  imperious  yet  urbane,  he  lived  and 
moved  in  a  style  commensurate  with  his  dignities  and 
great  wealth.  The  very  rumbling  of  his  gilded  coach 
over  the  rough  city  streets,  no  less  than  the  gracious  but 


THE  FIRST  BOARD  OF  TRUSTEES  141 

stately  inclination  of  his  flowing  peruke,  proclaimed  the 
majesty  of  the  law  and  the  power  of  the  crown  whose 
servant  he  was.  In  political  astuteness  without  a  peer, 
respected  and  admired  for  his  quick  penetration  and 
unfailing  good  judgment,  and  popular  for  his  aff*able 
manners,  James  De  Lancey  wielded  an  influence  over 
the  men  of  his  day  exceeded  by  no  other  individual  in 
New  York  prior  to  the  Revolution. 

Next  comes  the  Hon.  Joseph  Murray,  a  man  of  sober 
mien,  for  years  the  foremost  constitutional  lawyer  of  the 
province,  his  Majesty's  attorney-general,  a  member  of 
the  council  and  the  chief  exponent  of  the  royalist  view. 
Serving  Trinity  parish  as  vestryman  and  warden  for 
many  years,  he  was  also  often  retained  by  the  Conmion 
Council  in  its  litigations,  usually  decHning  compensa- 
tion. In  1728  his  disinterestedness  was  recognized  in 
bestowing  upon  him  the  freedom  of  the  city.  Devoted 
to  the  welfare  of  King's  College,  of  which  he  was  one  of 
the  first  governors,  he  bequeathed  to  it  a  handsome 
legacy  and  his  private  collection  of  valuable  books,  which 
formed  the  nucleus  of  the  College  Library.  Although 
somewhat  advanced  in  life,  he  was  still  the  acknowledged 
leader  of  the  colonial  bar. 

Close  upon  his  heels  treads  the  Hon.  John  Chambers, 
often  pitted  against  him  in  council  deliberations,  as  an 
uncompromising  foe  of  government  by  prerogative, 
demanding  for  provincials  the  freeholder  rights  of 
Englishmen.  With  Mr.  Murray,  in  return  for  gratui- 
tous legal  services,  he  had  been  complimented  with  the 
freedom  of  the  city  by  the  Common  Council,  of  which 
body  he  was  afterward  a  member.  He  was  also  concerned 
with  Trinity  Church  aff^airs,  a  vestryman  for  years  and 
succeeding  Mr.  Murray  as  warden.  An  associate  justice 


142  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

of  the  supreme  court,  he  had  been  identified  with  that 
great  advocate,  Andrew  Hamilton  of  Philadelphia,  in 
securing  the  acquittal  of  the  printer  Zenger,  nearly 
twenty  years  before,  whereby  freedom  of  the  press  was 
established  in  New  York. 

As  though  seeking  to  soften  the  ardor  of  their  dis- 
cussions with  words  of  peace,  there  now  advances  from 
the  shadows  the  benign  and  somberly  clad  form  of  the 
Rev.  Henry  Barclay,  D.D.,  second  rector  of  Trinity 
Church.  For  years  a  devoted  laborer  among  the  Mo- 
hawks, he  had  been  induced  some  time  before  to  take  up 
the  mantle  of  the  Rev.  William  Vesey.  He  was  to  find 
amongst  the  elect  as  bitter  feuds  as  prevailed  in  his  own 
heathen  field,  but  these  he  set  out  resolutely  to  bring  to 
reconciliation.  Displaying  unusual  adaptability,  he  won 
from  the  cultivated  and  well-to-do  the  same  high  regard 
so  openly  accorded  him  by  the  poor  Indian. 

Our  study  now  centers  in  the  grave  and  dignified  per- 
sonality of  the  Hon.  James  Alexander,  long  a  member 
of  the  council,  sometime  attorney-general  and  advocate- 
general,  and  venerated  as  an  oracle  by  his  associates  at 
the  bar.  In  addition  to  his  legal  learning,  he  had  marked 
capacity  for  scientific  research,  becoming  with  Dr. 
Franklin  and  others  a  founder  of  the  American  Philo- 
sophical Society.  One  writer  says  that  he  was  "equally 
distinguished  for  his  humanity,  generosity,  great  abilities 
and  honourable  stations."  One  of  the  leading  actors  in 
the  dramatic  Zenger  episode,  for  his  boldness  in  criti- 
cising the  bench  he  suffered  temporary  disbarment  and 
loss  of  conciliar  honors.  Restoration  followed  soon,  how- 
ever, the  grand  jury  and  Common  Council  drawing  up 
elaborate  testimonials  to  his  character  and  ability.  On 
the  passage  of  the  Montgomerie  charter  in  1731,  he  had 


VARIED  INTERESTS  REPRESENTED  143 

been  given  the  freedom  of  the  city,  together  with  James 
De  Lancey  and  William  Smith.  For  years  he  was  the 
mouthpiece  of  the  popular  party,  though  not  gifted  as  a 
speaker,  directing  pubhc  sentiment  through  the  columns 
of  John  Peter  Zenger's  Weekly  Journal, 

In  the  Hon.  John  Watts  the  Library  had  a  powerful 
supporter,  for  he  was  a  leader  in  the  province,  socially 
and  politically.  A  merchant  prince  of  business  life  above 
reproach,  he  was  ever  active  and  far-sighted  in  promoting 
the  welfare  of  his  fellow-citizens.  He  was  foremost  in 
the  erection  of  the  Exchange  in  1752,  to  which  he  later 
"with  others"  presented  a  large  clock;  and  he  was  deeply 
interested  in  the  establishment  of  the  New  York  Hos- 
pital, of  which  society  he  was  the  first  president,  from 
1770  till  a  successor  was  chosen  in  1784.  As  speaker  of 
the  assembly  and  while  a  member  of  the  council,  Mr. 
Watts  allied  himself  closely  with  the  policies  of  his 
intimate  friend  and  brother-in-law,  James  De  Lancey; 
and  afterward,  as  attorney-general  under  Governor 
Monkton,  he  showed  his  partisanship  so  strongly,  that  he 
is  said  to  have  been  designated  as  the  next  royal  gov- 
ernor, had  the  war  terminated  otherwise.  Yet  he  was 
withal  a  most  intrepid  denouncer  of  injustice,  and  was 
the  only  one  among  them  all  who  faced  the  Earl  of  Lou- 
doun to  oppose  the  quartering  of  troops  in  the  city  in 
1756.  A  Trustee  of  the  Society  Library  for  twenty 
years,  his  attention  to  its  interests  ceased  only  with  his 
removal,  in  1775,  to  England,  where  he  died  an  exile, 
bereft  of  his  great  estates. 

A  wholly  different  element  of  New  York's  social 
structure  now  demands  representation— a  class  the  most 
fundamental  of  all,  the  mercantile.  In  the  person  of  the 
Hon.  William  Walton  there  appears  more  of  the  mod- 


144  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

ern  self-made  man  than  is  generally  to  be  seen  in  the 
grandees  of  that  day.  The  most  prominent  member  of 
a  noted  family,  he  both  inherited  and  acquired  great 
wealth.  Through  certain  trade  preferences  conceded 
by  the  Spaniards  of  Florida  and  the  West  Indies,  and 
by  dexterous  privateering  during  the  French  war,  the 
Waltons  literally  coined  money.  A  man  of  strong  pub- 
lic spirit  he,  as  well  as  John  Watts,  refused  all  compen- 
sation while  representing  the  city  in  the  assembly. 
Established  in  the  most  elegant  private  dwelling  in  the 
colonies,  and  a  member  of  the  governor's  council,  Cap- 
tain Walton  maintained  so  lavish  an  hospitality,  that 
stories  of  his  entertainments,  replete  with  gold  and  silver 
service,  were  adduced  in  Parliament  as  proofs  positive 
that  the  colonists  were  not  impoverished  by  so-caUed 
repressive  acts. 

The  lot  next  falls  upon  Benjamin  Nicoll,  Esq.,  a  man 
in  middle  life.  Carefully  fitted  for  Yale  by  his  step- 
father, the  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Johnson,  first  president  of 
King's  CoUege,  he  subsequently  entered  the  legal  pro- 
fession in  New  York,  where  he  had  become  at  his  un- 
timely demise,  in  1760,  "a  Lawyer  of  great  note,  .  .  . 
than  whom  no  man  was  ever  more  lamented  throughout 
this  province."^  So  wrote  his  afflicted  parent  to  the 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  but  without  exaggeration,  to 
judge  from  his  record  as  a  devoted  Trustee  of  the  Li- 
brary up  to  the  time  of  his  death,  as  also  a  vestryman  of 
Trinity  Church  and  a  governor  of  King's  College,  of  the 
movement  to  establish  which  institution  he  is  said  to  have 
been,  with  Dr.  Johnson,  "the  Hf  e  and  soul."  His  public 
career  comprised  several  years'  service  as  an  assembly- 
man of  conservative  leanings,  and  an  appointment,  at 

^  N.  Y.  Col  Docs.,  VII,  441. 


THE  FIRST  TRUSTEES  WELL  CHOSEN       145 

the  very  time  our  story  opens,  to  act  with  Joseph  Mur- 
ray, William  Smith,  CadwaUader  Golden  and  William 
Livingston  on  an  important  commission  to  settle  the 
bovindary  question  with  Massachusetts.  Years  after- 
ward the  final  adjustment  of  this  matter  accorded  with 
the  findings  of  the  New  York  conmiissioners. 

Last  of  all  we  are  introduced  to  one  of  the  youngest 
and  cleverest  of  the  little  company,  William  Peartree 
Smith,  a  second  cousin  of  the  historian,  and  of  a  family 
long  identified  with  New  York.  His  grandfather,  Wil- 
liam "Port  Royal"  Smith,  an  alderman  for  many  years, 
was  son-in-law  to  Col.  William  Peartree,  mayor  of  the 
city  from  1703  to  1706.  During  his  residence  in  New 
York  he  was  for  some  years  a  trustee  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church.  A  classmate  and  life-long  intimate  of 
WilKam  Livingston,  he  also  took  up  his  residence  in 
New  Jersey,  where  he  had  earlier  been  instrumental  in 
the  founding  of  the  college  at  Princeton.  At  one  time 
secretary  of  the  province  of  New  Jersey,  he  acted  in 
1774  as  chairman  of  its  general  committee  of  corre- 
spondence, and  was  sent  the  next  year  as  delegate  to  the 
Continental  Congress.  Genuinely  interested  in  litera- 
ture, as  also  an  ardent  patriot,  he  was  widely  known  as 
a  writer  of  both  prose  and  verse  in  his  country's  cause ; 
for  a  time  he  had  been  associated  with  WiUiam  Living- 
ston in  editing  the  "Independent  Reflector."  After  the 
Revolution  he  held  various  positions  of  honor  in  his 
adopted  state. 

From  this  review  of  the  individuals  composing  the 
first  board  of  Trustees  of  the  New  York  Society  Li- 
brary, there  is  no  question  as  to  the  sagacity  of  the  sub- 
scribers in  their  choice.  These  twelve  gentlemen 
represented   as   a   whole   the   best   that   the   province 


146  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

afforded  in  position,  cultivation,  attainments,  native 
ability  and  character.  Their  very  difference  in  age  was 
a  good  omen,  as  well  as  the  variety  in  their  lines  of  ac- 
tivity. It  is  of  interest  further  to  note  that,  as  regards 
political  affiliation,  six  of  them  were  of  one  party  and 
half  a  dozen  of  the  other:  Messrs.  De  Lancey,  Murray, 
Barclay,  Watts,  Walton  and  Nicoll  properly  belonged 
to  the  aristocratic  or  government  party,  while  Messrs. 
Chambers  and  Smith,  the  Alexanders  and  the  Living- 
stons were  as  naturally  aligned  with  the  popular  side. 
In  the  next  chapter  we  shall  see  how  they  attacked  the 
problems  with  which  the  new  enterprise  fairly  bristled. 

Before  continuing  the  n'arrative,  however,  more  than 
passing  mention  is  due  the  allusion  in  the  Articles  to 
"our  intended  College."  It  is  a  matter  of  no  ordinary 
moment  that  the  Society  Library  and  King's  College 
were  founded  in  the  same  year.  That  two  such  under- 
takings, representing  ideas  so  advanced,  could  originate 
at  the  very  same  time,  reveals  an  abundance  of  cultivation 
and  public  spirit,  despite  "the  low  state  of  science  and 
the  narrow  views  and  jealousies  of  sectarian  zeal,"  which 
Smith  the  historian  knowingly  says  proved  obstacles  to 
the  early  advance  of  the  College. 

The  close  bond  between  these  twin-sister  institutions 
of  culture  may  further  be  seen  in  the  frequent  identity 
of  their  officers,  from  that  day  to  this.  Of  the  first 
Library  board,  for  instance,  no  fewer  than  eight- 
James  De  Lancey,  John  Chambers  and  Henry  Barclay, 
each  ex  officio,  and  Joseph  Murray,  WiUiam  Walton, 
John  Watts,  Benjamin  Nicoll  and  William  Livingston 
—were  named  among  the  first  governors  of  the  College, 
showing  also  that  men  of  ability  are  usually  to  be  found 


BOND  BETWEEN  LIBRARY  AND  COLLEGE    147 

in  more  than  one  good  work.  And  this  hereditary  con- 
cord between  the  two  institutions  has  never  been  more 
marked  than  to-day,  in  their  reciprocal  privileges  of  con- 
sultation, so  cordially  subsisting  between  the  Society 
Library  and  the  Library  of  Columbia  University. 


II 

FIRST  STEPS,  1754- 1T72 

rHE  New-York  Mercury  for  Monday,  May  6, 
1754,  in  announcing  the  names  of  the  Trustees 
elected  "to  superintend  the  Affairs  of  our  LI- 
BRARY, for  the  present  Year,"  adds:  "The  above 
gentlemen  are  desired  to  meet  To-morrow,  at  the  House 
of  Edward  Willet,  in  the  Broad- Way,  precisely  at 
11  o'clock." 

While  we  as  well  as  the  new  officers  await  this  inter- 
esting event,  it  should  be  stated  that  from  now  on  our 
chief  source  of  information  as  to  the  proceedings  of 
successive  boards  of  Trustees  is  found  in  the  complete 
series  of  their  books  of  minutes,  happily  preserved  to  the 
Library  through  all  its  century-and-a-half  of  existence. 
The  first  two  volumes,  ending  respectively  in  1772  and 
1832,  are  leather-covered,  dingy  old  folios,  the  writing 
varying  in  style,  and  in  conformity  with  the  canons  of 
orthography,  under  different  scribes,  but  as  legible  to- 
day as  when  penned. 

The  entries  at  first  are  variously  headed,  "At  a  Meet- 
ing of  the  Trustees  of  the  New- York  Library,"  "At  a 
Meeting  of  the  Trustees  of  the  Library,"  or  simply  "At 
a  Meeting  of  the  Trustees,"  until  October,  1759,  after 

148 


EXPLANATION  OF  "SOCIETY  LIBRARY"     149 

which  date  the  stereotyped  form  begins,  "At  a  Meeting 
of  the  Trustees  of  the  New  York  Society  Library,"  end- 
ing with  place  and  hour  of  assembhng.  Then  after  the 
word  "Present"  are  listed  the  members  in  attendance. 
Seven  constituting  a  quorum,  it  often  chanced  that  no 
meeting  could  be  held,  but  abortive  attempts  were 
scrupulously  entered,  even  when  scarcely  two  or  three 
were  gathered  together. 

Although  for  its  early  years  the  institution  was  not 
styled  "Society  Library"  in  the  minutes,  it  yet  is  plain 
that  this  name  was  soon  decided  upon,  from  an  an- 
nouncement in  the  Mercury  of  October  21,  1754,  ad- 
dressed to  "the  Proprietors  of  the  New- York  Society 
Library,"  as  also  from  subsequent  newspaper  notices. 
The  origin  of  this  unique  title  is  often  a  subject  of 
inquiry.  Some  have  maintained,  in  view  of  the  high 
social  standing  of  its  originators,  as  of  its  general  mem- 
bership always,  that  the  institution  was  so  called  because 
it  was  meant  to  be,  as  it  has  ever  been,  the  Library  of 
New  York  Society!  But  this  opinion  cannot  be  enter- 
tained seriously,  for  the  term  "society"  had  not  then,  nor 
until  comparatively  recent  times,  the  limited  or  derived 
sense  of  caste.  Besides,  such  a  narrow  view  is  incon- 
sistent with  the  liberal  aim  of  the  founders,  and  tends  to 
bring  undeserved  reproach  upon  the  institution. 

The  question  is  susceptible  of  explanation  as  follows : 
in  the  beginning  there  was  formed  a  voluntary  associa- 
tion of  persons,  a  company,  a  society.  This  term,  "the 
Society,"  has  been  used  officially  in  the  minutes  and  in 
miscellaneous  documents  and  notices  to  designate  the 
organization  always,  the  expression,  "the  Library,"— 
now  in  conmion  parlance,  and  therefore  used  throughout 
the  present  work,— having  a  colloquial  and  less  formal 


160  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

tone.  This  Society,  then,  distinctively  a  New  York 
enterprise,  was  instituted  to  found  and  perpetuate  a 
Library;  hence— the  New  York  Society  Library.  As 
such  it  corresponds  exactly  in  purpose  to  the  Library 
Company  of  Philadelphia,  the  Redwood  Library^  at 
Newport,  and  the  Charleston  (S.  C.)  Library  Society, 
all  thriving  to-day,^  and  to  the  Social  Libraries  so  com- 
mon in  New  England  just  before  and  in  the  half -cen- 
tury following  the  Revolution.  The  generic  or  class 
name  of  all  these  institutions  is  Proprietary  Libraries; 
yet  they  have  always  been  Public  Libraries  in  the  orig- 
inal meaning  of  the  term,— that  is,  available  or  open  to 
the  public,  like  public  houses  or  conveyances,— in  contra- 
distinction to  private  or  parochial  or  special  collections. 
It  is  only  since  about  1850  that  the  word  "public"  has 
come  to  mean  "free,"  as  applied  to  libraries. 

For  fully  one  hundred  years  the  Society  Library  was 
popularly  called  the  "City  Library,"  long  after  the 
Mercantile  Library  Association  and  the  Apprentices' 
Library  were  established  in  1820,  and  even  after  the 

*  Since  1835  known  oflOicially  as  The  umes  of  a  later  colonial  association, 

Redwood  Library  and  Athenaeum.  the     Hartford     Library     Company, 

^  Among  similar  institutions,  long  formed  in  1774  (see  The  Connecticut 
since  passed  into  oblivion,  may  be  Courant,  Feb.  22,  March  1, 15,  23,  Apl. 
mentioned  the  Book  Company  of  26),  are  now  preserved  in  the  Hart- 
Durham,  Conn.,  established  in  1733;  ford  Public  Library.  Of  those  or- 
the  Philogrammatican  Library  of  ganized  soon  after  the  Revolution, 
Lebanon,  Conn.,  instituted  in  1738  the  Library  Company  of  Baltimore, 
(see  "Booklovers  of  1738— One  of  incorporated  in  1797,  was  merged 
the  First  Libraries  in  America,"  by  into  the  Maryland  Historical  Society 
Mrs.  Martha  W.  Hooker,  in  T/ie  Con-  in  1854;  while  the  Boston  Library 
necticut  Magazine,  X  (1906),  715  Society,  dating  from  1792,  has  suc- 
et  seq.) ;  the  Elizabeth-Town  (N.  J.)  cessfuUy  maintained  an  independent 
Library  Company,  founded  in  1755  existence.  Wider  in  scope  than  any 
(see  The  New-York  Gazette;  or,  of  these,  the  Boston  Athenaeum, 
the  Weekly  Post-Boy,  March  3,  which  has  lately  celebrated  its  cen- 
1760);  and  the  equally  obscure  Al-  tennial  anniversary  (1907),  presents 
bany  Society  Library,"^  whose  book-  a  different  type  of  proprietary  estab- 
plate  bears  date  of  1759  (see  illus-  lishment,  as  will  presently  appear 
tration  in  American  Book-Plates,  by  (see  Chapter  VII). 
Charles  D.  Allen,  p.  84).    Some  vol- 


INITIAL  ACT  OF  FIRST  BOARD  151 

insignificant  beginning  of  the  present  City  Library  in 
the  City  Hall,  a  collection  chiefly  of  records  for  con- 
sultation only,  under  supervision  by  the  board  of  alder- 
men/ With  the  gradual  development  of  the  modern 
free  Public  Library  system,  however,  the  old  appellation 
has  fallen  into  disuse,  and  would  not  now  be  recognized 
as  meaning  by  far  the  oldest  Library  in  the  city— the 
New  York  Society  Library. 

Ten  Trustees  are  recorded  as  forming  the  first  meet- 
ing of  its  newly  elected  board,  held  on  May  7th,  the  only 
absentees  being  James  Alexander  and  Robert  R.  Liv- 
ingston. They  met  at  the  City  Arms,^  on  the  corner  of 
Broadway  and  Stone  (Thames)  street,  the  principal 
tavern  in  town,  then  but  lately  opened  in  the  former 
residence  of  Lieutenant-Governor  De  Lancey.  That 
dignitary  was  no  doubt  called  to  the  chair,  though  the 
minutes  are  mute  on  the  subject;  in  fact  it  is  not  until 
1791  that  there  is  mention  of  a  chairman  at  all.  The 
chronicle  of  proceedings  is  pitifully  meager  in  the  early 
years,  simply  giving  a  bare  outline  of  the  few  measures 
approved,  the  record  of  attendance  and,  not  invariably, 
the  results  of  annual  elections. 

^  After  the  destruction  of  the  old  memorative  of  interesting  events"  in 

Corporation  Library  in  1776,  the  city  the  reign  of  Pope  Pius  IX,  "recently 

harbored  no  collection  of  its  own  un-  received     from     him     through     the 

til  an  ordinance  of  January,  1849,  agency  of  Mons.  A[lexandre]  Vatte- 

set  aside  a  room  "for  the  accommo-  mare."      (See  p.   55n.)      Occupying 

dation  of  a  Library,  to  contain  the  various  rooms,  the  City  Library  has 

books  now  belonging  to  the  Common  been  in  its  present  apartments  since 

Council,    and   which   may   hereafter  January,  1898,  Librarian  Philip  Baer 

belong  to  them."     As  early  as  De-  having    held    office    since    January, 

cember,  1816,  there  had  been  a  tenta-  1895. 

tive    but    ineffectual    suggestion    of  '  Called  also    the    Province    Arms 

"the    expediency    of    establishing    a  Tavern,  the  New  York  Arms   and. 

Library  for  the  use  of  the  Common  after  the  Revolution,  the  New  York 

Council."    Final  action  by  the  alder-  State   Arms.     In   1792  the  Tontine 

men  was  occasioned  by  a  gift  to  the  Association    bought    the    old    stone 

city  of  a  "splendid  case  of  valuable  structure  and  erected  on  its  site  the 

medals   [now  in  the  keeping  of  the  famous    City   Hotel,    demolished   in 

New  York  Historical  Society],  com-  turn  about  1850. 


15S  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

The  initial  act  of  this  first  board  was  very  sensibly  a 
resolution  empowering  John  Watts,  William  P.  Smith 
and  William  Alexander,  Trustees,  and  John  Livingston 
—evidently  for  the  shareholders  in  general,  as  he  was  not 
then  a  Trustee— to  "receive  the  Subscription  Money, 
from  the  several  Subscribers,  in  order  to  be  laid  out  in 
Books  for  the  Library,"  a  service  they  "agreed  to  per- 
form Gratis."  Mr.  Smith  was  made  "Clerk,"  also  a 
"gratis"  office,  and  ordered  to  "prepare  a  proper  Book 
at  the  public  Expense,  for  entring  the  Minutes."  They 
voted  to  meet  "in  the  Public  Library-Room"  thrice 
yearly,  on  the  first  Tuesday  afternoon  in  April,  May 
and  September,  at  three  o'clock.  A  fine  of  three  shill- 
ings was  to  be  levied  for  excuseless  absence,  "to  be  paid 
into  the  Hands  of  the  Cashier,"  but  no  further  mention 
is  made  of  the  penalty  or  of  any  enforcement. 

As  few  steps  were  taken  at  the  opening  session,  in  all 
likelihood  their  deliberations  at  the  tavern  were  weighty 
and  prolonged.  At  any  rate,  there  was  unfinished  busi- 
ness when  they  adjourned,  to  meet  nine  days  hence  at  the 
same  place,  each  Trustee  pledged  to  bring  a  "catalogue" 
of  suitable  books.  On  reconvening,  some  of  them,  "vizt 
Mess^^  Barclay,  W^  Livingston,  Robt  R.  Livingston, 
W^  Alexander  &  W^  P.  Smith,  produced  a  List  of 
Books."  "But,"  the  minutes  record  with  much  sim- 
plicity, "as  M^  Murray  imagined,  there  would  not  be 
sufficient  time,  at  this  Meeting,  to  Consider,  examine,  & 
collect  a  proper  Catalogue  from  the  Same,"  the  im- 
portant matter  was  again  postponed.  Nor  until  the  end 
of  the  month  was  a  full  report  rendered  of  their  choice 
for  the  first  consignment,  when,  "having  now  spent  some 
time  in  examining  the  several  Lists  of  Books  before 
produced,   the    Trustees    agreed   upon   the   following 


FIRST  LIST  OF  BOOKS  APPROVED  153 

Catalogue  selected  from  the  s^  Lists,  to  be  sent  for  by 
the  first  Opportunity." 

This  combined  list,  as  spread  upon  the  records,  in- 
cludes some  250  titles  of  leading  works  of  the  day  in 
literature  and  science.  It  is  interesting  in  itself,  and  is 
of  especial  value  as  showing  the  taste  of  the  Trustees 
and  their  aim  to  secure  the  best  and  a  variety.  It  is 
pleasing  also  to  observe  how  impressed  they  were  with 
the  need  of  frugality,  some  works  being  endorsed  "2^ 
hand  if  good."  Naturally  there  are  the  usual  selections 
from  the  ancient  classics,  from  Ehzabethan  writers,  and 
from  essayists  of  the  age  of  Anne.  Historical  works 
abound,  interspersed  among  memoirs,  diplomatic  cor- 
respondence, party  pamphlets,  and  philosophical  and 
scientific  brochures.  Legal  minds  presumably  yearned 
for  "State  Tryals  complete  at  large"  or  "Debates  in 
Parliamt";  while  the  mercantile  element  was  to  find 
relaxation  preferably  in  books  of  travel,  diverting  and 
yet  not  remote  from  accustomed  interests. 

For  the  clergy  there  were  provided  standard  com- 
mentaries, as  also  devotional  and  theological  disserta- 
tions without  number,  though  not  of  the  extreme 
heaviness  of  earlier  collections  in  New  York.  The 
remainder  consisted  of  treatises  in  mathematics  and  in 
the  field  of  the  natural  sciences,  together  with  an  assort- 
ment from  the  realms  of  music,  oratory  and  logic.  Truly 
these  were  earnest-minded  men,  aware  and  proud  of 
their  responsibility.  We  may  readily  fancy  how  sug- 
gestions had  poured  in  upon  them  from  interested  sub- 
scribers, and  no  less  from  members  of  their  families. 
One  is  impressed  with  the  utter  absence  of  light  reading 
in  the  final  decision;  for,  after  approving  the  list,  Mr. 
Watts  was  to  "transmit  by  the  first  Opportunity,"  to  one 


@ArtrdlS  Jfiiu Julscmpfrm ndf effete 

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i/i\  {^  OXUj'bo  pyojnii^  topoM   JrUX 3o\imbs  JuwlioA  durre/nch,  eoLctx  en  ih  frH- 

rfuJ ,  or  ow(  C(ls^(f>^,  cmuaMuj  ou^oftki  vwmkA  J[  Jo^cm^c/rf  fwr^te,  oi  t^uui  (^'f^, 
Jiyi  tvfucii  ^n/tpa^^  iv-t  Mrm  to  trwU-'camMouyxitu  cm  ific  (a^i-^uubcuj  vn  {^pnf,  im  e<^vfu^. 

U)mj:}caHrrci  id diipc^&  ff^tfifjaib  fHaiitUj  i/n  pivt^xasi^ia Such  fioakijOiS^im  sfic\J^  tfmk 
toTm/ue/t  iJYODi  %m/  to  JtmCj  (mh  t/npDtwnri'na'pt  ^crui>d  erf  floom  io  dUiprti^  ^m^  Wj 

■^omce  (J?<^  iOA^  iurf cwop fo  o^tcM'ife  ^atnu  vj\  iJudk  tfe  fWv^(7rto^ci  fc  ih^ 
SCudJd^'romi  ^laU^  (sim^i^iose  (vfwcur^nc&Sul^vhi)t/rfki'>iQ'ffpatiiuJi  hatu  /art 
i^Ioom  cff,  f3oaAja/  thc'^mstlu  /fictff  oLpftm^tf ]  omb  todo  evmj  OWi^  ffetx  jhM 

I/l-  Wi/nA  JtSicrriJkrt^  or  ^  ^'f^.  <f^(^^ciL>eDi9liah/-f5  tah  crxAMcmii  hook  cu- 
tkt  attYcmy%tf3^.  omhiskjiJlp'iJ^^ai  so  fcmPl  a^Ji^ cuiU^ruiim{aif  ifi*Jvi7j£ ^i^j^ 
ir\  (M8  ^  shcS  A^jB^  a  &nae/f  id  ]oouu  (f(jy  t^  ^vi»(^0k  Jaxb  fboc^  ,  &^^  ^ 
to  ^fo^uh  (kji^oJf^  u/fio  f^a&TKff-^  SuSicmhrfPiSMio ,  Jen  ih^  £vurtoaf3^ 


First  page  of  the  Articles  (reduced).    See  p.  136  et  seg.. 


BOOKS  ORDERED  FROM  LONDON      155 

Moses  Franks  in  London,  the  sum  of  £300  "in  Bills  of 
Exch"  for  these  books,  "or  such  other  modern  Authors 
as  he  may  judge  most  suitable  for  a  public  Library,  & 
have  obtained  an  established  Reputation  among  the 
Learned."  Then  follow  the  names  of  "paid"  sub- 
scribers, to  the  number  of  118,  including  three  "in  Eng- 
land," Moses,  Naphtali  and  Aaron  Franks,  the  agents 
of  the  enterprise;  certainly  the  soliciting  committee  had 
done  its  work  well,  for  the  list  comprises  leading  citizens 
of  the  period. 

Among  them,  besides  individuals  mentioned  elsewhere 
in  these  pages,  appear  the  names  of  Mayor  Holland,  his 
successor,  John  Cruger  the  younger,  James  Duane,  first 
mayor  after  the  Revolution,  Abraham  De  Peyster,  pro- 
vincial treasurer,  Capt.  Archibald  Kennedy,  later 
known  as  the  Earl  of  Cassilis,  the  Rev.  Samuel  Auch- 
muty,  assistant  minister  and  afterward  rector  of  Old 
Trinity,  the  Rev.  Alexander  Gumming  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church,  Lambert  Moore,  Esq.,  for  years  clerk 
of  the  board  of  governors  of  King's  College,  Col. 
Beverley  Robinson,  of  French  War  luster,  James  Mc- 
Evers,  who  very  sensibly  resigned  the  odious  post  of 
stamp  collector,  James  Parker  and  Hugh  Gaine,  the 
well-known  printers  and  editors,  and  Dr.  Richard 
Shuckburgh,  reputed  author  of  "Yankee  Doodle,"  in 
addition  to  members  of  such  other  notable  old  New  York 
families  as  Abeel,  Alexander,  Alsop,  Aspinwall,  Bar- 
clay, Bayard,  Beekman,  Cronameline,  Cuyler,  De  Lan- 
cey,  Des  Brosses,  Dey,  Duncan,  Gouverneur,  Harison, 
Jones,  Kortright,  Lawrence,  Lispenard,  Livingston, 
Ludlow,  Morris,  Nichols,  NicoU,  Ogden,  Provoost, 
Richard,  Smith,  Stuyvesant,  Van  Cortlandt,  Vander- 
spiegel,  Van  Home,  Walton  and  Watts,  many  of  whose 


156  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

shares  are  held  to-day  by  descendants,  and,  in  not  a  few 
instances,  of  the  same  name. 

During  the  summer,  the  question  of  securing  proper 
accommodations  for  the  expected  collection  was  doubt- 
less much  discussed.  At  the  September  meeting,  as 
already  stated,  they  adopted  the  clever  plan  of  taking 
charge  of  the  unused  old  Corporation  Library,  in  return 
for  permission  from  the  Comjnon  Council  to  keep  their 
own  books  in  the  "Library  Room"  in  the  City  Hall,  with 
what  entire  success  we  already  know.^ 

At  the  same  time,  in  anticipation  of  the  approaching 
arrival  of  the  books,  they  drew  up  their  first  set  of  rules, 
to  be  "strictly  observed  by  the  Librarian,"— yet  to  be 
appointed,— as  follows: 

Reg.  1.  That  no  Book  whatsoever  belonging  to  this  Library, 
shall  be  detained  in  the  hands  of  any  Subscriber,  longer  than 
the  space  of  One  Month,  under  Penalty  of  paying  for  the  use 
of  the  same  for  any  longer  time  as  a  Non-Subscriber. 

Reg.  2.  Every  Non-Subscriber  shall  pay  to  the  Librarian,  for 
the  use  of  a  Book  after  the  following  Rates  Viz^ 

For  a  Folio  Volumn  ....  1  Month  ...  45. 
For  a  Quarto  D^  .  .  .  .  1  Month  .  .  .  9>s. 
For  an  Octavo,  or  lesser  Vol.  .  1  Month  .  .  .  Is. 
And  if  any  Book  shall  be  detained  in  the  hands  of  a  Borrower 
longer  than  the  time  herein  limitted,  he  shall  pay  for  every 
day  exceeding  the  said  time  One  Shillmg  untiU  the  same  be 
returned. 

Reg.  3.  Every  Non-Subscriber,  upon  taking  a  Book  out  of  the 
Library,  shall  deposit  in  the  hands  of  the  Librarian  one  third 
more  than  the  Value  of  the  Book  taken,  and  give  a  sufficient 
Receipt  for  the  same. 

This  table  is  printed  in  the  Mercury  for  October  21st, 
which  same  issue  conveys  the  satisfying  information, 

*  See  pp.  77-78. 


ARRIVAL  OF  LONDON  IMPORTATION         157 

already  quoted,  that  the  books  "lately  imported  are 
placed  for  the  present,  by  Leave  of  the  Corporation,  in 
their  Library  Room  in  the  City-HaU,"  where  "constant 
Attendance"  was  assured  on  Tuesdays  and  Fridays 
from  ten  to  twelve.  In  November,  however,  a  notice  in 
the  Mercury  declared  the  collection  accessible  only  on 
Tuesdays,  for  one  hour,  "during  the  winter  season." 

Thus,  in  the  meantime,  the  eagerly  awaited  collection 
had  come,  after  a  voyage  covering  "42  Days  from  Lon- 
don," according  to  the  advice  in  the  Mercury  of  October 
14th.  The  arrival  of  the  volumes  is  announced  in  this 
latter  issue  with  the  following  flourish : 

Some  Time  ago  we  informed  our  Readers,  that  a  Subscription 
was  then  on  foot  for  raising  a  Sum  of  Money  in  order  to  erect 
a  public  Library  in  this  City;  we  now  have  the  great  Pleasure 
and  Satisfaction  of  acquainting  them,  That  all  the  Books  sent 
for,  are  arrived  safe  in  Capt.  Miller.  We  hope  that  all  who 
have  a  Taste  for  poHte  Literature,  and  an  eager  Thirst  after 
Knowledge  and  Wisdom,  will  now  repair  to  those  Fountains 
and  Repositories  from  whence  they  can,  by  Study,  be  collected. 
And  we  heartily  wish,  that  the  glorious  Motives  of  acquiring 
that  which  alone  distinguishes  human  Nature  (we  mean  Science 
and  Virtue,  join'd  to  the  noble  Principles  of  being  useful  to 
Mankind,  and  more  especially  to  our  dear  Country)  will  be  suffi- 
cient to  excite  the  most  Lethargic,  to  peruse  the  Volumes  pur- 
chased for  this  End,  by  Means  of  the  Advice  and  Endeavours  of 
Gentlemen  whom  we  and  future  Generations,  will  have  Reason, 
we  hope,  to  praise  and  extoll ;  and  whom,  we  cannot  help  saying, 
are  an  Honour  to  their  Country:  We  finally  wish,  that  New- 
Yorky  now  she  has  an  Opportunity,  wiU  show  that  she  comes  not 
short  of  the  other  Provinces,  in  Men  of  excellent  Genius,  who, 
by  cultivating  the  Talents  of  Nature,  will  take  off  that  Reflec- 
tion cast  on  us  by  the  neighbouring  Colonies,  of  being  an 
ignorant  People;  and  make  the  following  Maxim  of  Seneca^ s 
our  own:  Inter  Studia  Versandtmi  est  et  inter  Auctores  Sapien- 


158  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

tice,  ut  Qucesita  discamus,  nondtmi  Iwventa  qioceramus.     Sen. 
Epis.  civ. 

A  printed  catalogue  of  the  new  collection  was 
straightway  published  by  Hugh  Gaine  and  advertised 
in  his  Mercury  on  October  21st,  at  the  price  of  "Four 
Coppers."  Unhappily  no  specimen  of  this  first  cata- 
logue of  the  Society  Library  is  known  to  be  in  existence, 
though  there  is  ever  the  chance  of  one's  coming  to  light 
in  some  ancestral  attic.  Tradition  has  it  that  the  initial 
consignment  comprised  "about  700  Volumes  of  new,  well 
chosen,  Books,"  ^  a  somewhat  exaggerated  statement, 
however,  as  appears  on  consultation  of  the  minutes.  Not 
more  than  650  volumes,  at  the  most,  can  have  constituted 
the  original  collection,  which  William  Smith  prophesied 
would  "in  Process  of  Time  .  .  .  probably  become 
vastly  rich  and  voluminous."^ 

After  some  months'  trial,  the  following  "Rates"  were 
substituted  in  June,  1755,  for  keeping  books  out  over  a 
month:  "for  every  folio,  per  diem  1  s.  For  every  Quarto 
9^  For  every  Octavo  6^  and  for  every  Duodecimo  8^" 
It  was  also  decreed  that,  "instead  of  an  allowance  of  one 
Month  for  the  Loan  of  Books  of  All  Sizes,"  the  time  be 
"For  every  Folio  6  Weeks,  For  every  Quarto  4  Weeks, 
For  every  Octavo  3  Weeks  &  for  every  Duodecimo  2 
Weeks,"  thus  returning  to  the  plan  of  the  original 
Articles. 

At  this  time  John  Morin  Scott  was  given  charge 
of  the  finances,  in  place  of  William  P.  Smith,  and  also 
"the  Care  of  the  Library,"  with  power  to  depute  the 
same.  No  hint  is  vouchsafed  as  to  who  had  been  acting 
as  custodian  before;  probably  Mr.  Smith  had  engaged 

^  William   Smith,   The  History  of  the  Province  of  New-York.    London, 
1757.    P.  195.  'Ibid. 


CHURCH  QUARRELS  DISTURB  ELECTION     159 

some  person,  for  he  appears  to  have  been  the  sole  officer 
of  the  board  that  first  year.  Again,  in  November,  1756, 
Gabriel  Ludlow  was  put  in  charge  of  the  collection,  and, 
together  with  David  Clarkson,  was  directed  to  receive 
funds  and  subscriptions.  But  in  May,  1757,  Mr.  Smith 
was  once  more  made  "Clerk  to  the  Trustees,"  an  office 
evidently  including  guardianship  of  the  capital,  then 
"in  M^  Ludlow's  hands." 

At  this  stage  it  is  well  to  pause  for  a  glance  at  the 
changes  that  had  taken  place  in  the  ranks  of  the  Trus- 
tees. In  consequence  of  three  more  elections,  held  regu- 
larly according  to  advertisement  at  the  Exchange, 
thirteen  new  names  appear  on  the  roll,  of  whom  three 
were  the  remaining  founders,  Philip  Livingston,  John 
Morin  Scott  and  William  Smith,  Jr.,  all  chosen  at  the 
second  election.  That  this  balloting  of  1755  was  at- 
tended with  a  repetition  of  the  contest  of  a  year  before, 
with  even  greater  acrimony,  is  revealed  in  the  same 
communication  from  the  forceful  pen  of  "B,"  in  the 
Mercury  for  May  12th,  above  quoted  in  part.^ 

Referring  to  the  former  effort  as  "A  Design  so  dis- 
graceful and  ridiculous  in  itself,  and  so  effectually  frus- 
trated, .  .  .  [as  to]  have  satisfied  any  Man,  but  a  blind, 
hot-headed,  and  imprudent  Zealot,"  this  racy  writer  pro- 
ceeds to  inform  how,  "after  the  fullest  Defeat  in  the 
most  shameful  Cause,  Bigotry  ventured  again  to  rear 
her  Head";  and  how  a  second  attempt  was  made, 
"equally  unsuccessful  with  the  first."  Responsibility 
was  attributed  to  "the  Resentment  of  a  Bigot,  now 
heightened  into  Madness  by  the  late  frequent  contro- 
versial Defeats  of  High-Church,  on  the  Subject  of 
the  College,"  which  "drove  him,  in  Defiance  of  Reason, 

1  See  pp.  139, 140. 


160         THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

and  the  Rules  of  Probability,  into  a  Resolution,  once 
more  to  attack  the  Presbyterians,  and  that  in  a  Manner 
more  base  and  insidious  than  the  Former." 

He  then  explains  that,  on  the  day  before  election, 
"this  palpable  Untruth  was  impudently  coined,"  and 
"as  impudently  propagated.  That  the  Presbyterians 
were  resolved  to  turn  out  every  Churchman  from  the 
Trusteeship/'  "With  what  View  this  vile  Slander  was 
published,"  was  "a  Matter  too  obvious,  to  require  a 
curious  Disquisition."  After  denouncing  such  a  report, 
as  having  "a  natural  Tendency  to  prepossess  every  warm 
Episcopalian  with  the  strongest  Prejudices  against  the 
Presbyterians"  the  philippic  continues :  "And  doubtless 
had  this  Scheme  taken  its  full  Effect,  the  Trusteeship 
would  have  been  filled  with  a  Set  of  Persons  far  differ- 
ent in  their  Sentiments,  from  those  who  now  enjoy  it." 

This  unpleasant  expose  may  well  close  with  its  very 
interesting  estimate  of  the  position  and  opportunities 
of  the  trusteeship : 

It  must  indeed  be  admitted,  that  the  Office  of  a  Trustee  of  our 
Library  is,  at  present,  of  very  little  Importance,  either  to  its 
Possessor,  or  the  Public.  We  have  an  excellent  Collection  of 
Books,  and  no  Money  in  Bank  to  be  squandered.  Hence  it  is 
impossible  to  prostitute  the  Office;  and  consequently  a  Matter 
of  Indifference  whoever  fiUs  it.  But  if  its  Unimportance  cannot 
subvert  the  Right  of  a  Subscriber  to  stand  Candidate  for  the 
Post,  all  undue  Means  to  destroy  the  Impartiality  of  an  Elec- 
tion, is  an  Abridgment  of  his  Right;  which  doubtless  as  an 
Englishman,  he  may  justly  resent. 

The  fact  that  the  seven  new  persons  then  chosen  to 
the  board  were  all  of  the  popular  party  is  proof  enough 
that  "the  Presbyterians,  ,  .  .  from  a  Love  of  British 
Freedom,  .  .  .  devised  Means  in  this  particular  Case, 


OPPOSING  POLITICAL  FORCES  161 

effectually  to  disappoint  the  Invaders  of  their  Rights," 
and  that  "in  doing  it  they  were  remarkably  successful." 
They  were  William  Smith,  William  Smith,  Jr.,  Philip, 
John  and  Peter  Van  Brugh  Livingston,  John  Vander- 
spiegel  and  John  Morin  Scott,  an  interesting  group,  as 
showing  the  alignment  of  Dutch  Church  members  with 
Presbyterians  in  opposition  to  the  Anglican  element. 
Though  John  Chambers  and  James  Alexander  of  the 
Whig  contingent  were  retired,  their  places  were  filled  by 
representatives  of  the  same  views,  William  Walton 
being  the  sole  Trustee  with  government  leanings  re- 
turned to  office. 

The  next  year  saw  a  turning  of  the  tables,  for,  of  the 
seven  above  mentioned,  only  one,  John  Livingston,  was 
then  reelected;  while  his  Honor  Lieutenant-Governor 
De  Lancey,  the  Hon.^  Joseph  Murray,  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Barclay,  the  Hon.  John  Watts  and  Benjamin  NicoU, 
Esq.,  were  triumphantly  reinstated;  as  was  also  the 
Hon.  John  Chambers  of  the  opposition,  which  lost  in  its 
turn  William  Livingston,  the  Hon.  William  Alexander, 
Robert  R.  Livingston  and  William  P.  Smith,  besides 
six  of  the  Whigs  elected  only  the  year  before.  Further- 
more, the  aristocratic  following  gained  four  new  men  in 
the  Hon.  Oliver  De  Lancey,  the  Hon.  Henry  Cruger, 
David  Clarkson  and  Gabriel  Ludlow. 

In  1757  there  came  another  reversal,  by  which  there 
was  a  more  equitable  division  of  the  opposing  political 
forces,  with  only  two  new  names,  Peter  Keteltas  and 
Goldsbrow  Banyar.  Thereafter,  a  wholesome  calm 
seems  to  have  settled  down  upon  that  annual  function, 
for,  in  the  seventeen  remaining  years  before  the  disrup- 

*  The  titie  "Hon."  in  colonial  days  implied  a  member 
of  the  governor's  council. 


16^  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

tion  occurred,  but  ten  additional  individuals  were  called 
to  the  work,  changes  seemingly  taking  place  only  with 
inroads  of  time. 

When  one  surveys  the  characters  and  careers  of  these 
several  Trustees,  one  finds  the  fire  of  partisan  zeal  sink- 
ing low  in  comparison  with  their  general  worth  and 
usefulness  in  their  day  and  community.  Of  this  type 
Peter  Van  Brugh  Livingston,  an  older  brother  of  Philip 
and  WiUiam,  is  a  conspicuous  example.  A  successful 
merchant,  with  an  unblemished  record  for  probity,  he 
not  only  aided  the  city  and  its  various  concerns  in  num- 
berless ways,  but  also  has  a  strong  claim  on  his  country's 
gratitude,  for  patriotic  assistance  with  funds  and  credit. 
Stanchly  Presbyterian  in  church  affiliations,  he  served  as 
an  elder  for  more  than  twenty  years,  and  for  eight  years 
as  a  trustee,  of  the  old  First  Church.  He  was  also  treas- 
urer of  the  New  York  Hospital  for  seven  years.  His 
trusteeship  in  the  Library  lasted  until  the  very  eve  of 
the  Revolution,  but  he  left  the  city  in  1787,  before  the 
institution  was  set  on  its  feet  again.  John  Living- 
ston, yet  another  member  of  this  remarkable  brother- 
hood, appears  to  have  been  its  only  Tory  representative, 
perhaps  because  of  his  large  mercantile  interests.  He 
did  not  turn  against  his  family,  however;  while  his  ser- 
vices to  church  and  state,  in  deliberations  of  the  Common 
Coimcil  and  of  the  Dutch  Church  consistory,  entitle  him 
to  respectful  appreciation. 

The  Hon.  William  Smith,  Sr.,  was  reputed  the  most 
eloquent  speaker  in  the  province.  With  his  friend, 
James  Alexander,  he  had  pleaded  the  causes  of  free 
speech  and  free  press,  to  their  own  personal  temporary 
humiliation,  but  to  the  lasting  advantage  of  democracy. 
These  same  men  were  also  associated  in  foimding  the 


MERCHANTS  ON  THE  BOARD  163 

first  public  school  in  New  York  in  1732.  Honors  heaped 
upon  him  never  turned  his  head,  as  he  calmly  put  aside 
what  did  not  fit  in  with  his  carefully  planned  life.  At 
the  age  of  twenty-seven,  he  had  declined  the  presidency 
of  Yale  College;  again,  in  1760  he  refused  the  vacant 
chief  justiceship.  But  he  served  his  fellow-citizens  with 
distinction  in  the  several  posts  of  councilor,  attorney- 
general,  advocate-general  and  associate  justice  of  the 
highest  provincial  tribunal ;  and  no  less  useful  was  he  as 
one  of  the  earliest  trustees,  and  later  as  an  elder,  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  in  New  York. 

It  may  have  been  noticed  that  the  lawyers  were  in 
large  majority  on  the  first  board— not  at  all  an  astonish- 
ing phenomenon.  Little  by  httle,  however,  the  mer- 
chants gained  admittance,  imtil  it  is  worthy  of  comment 
that,  of  the  twenty-five  Trustees  in  office  prior  to  1760, 
there  were  ten  merchants  to  thirteen  "Esquires."  They 
include  John  Vanderspiegel,  who  acted  as  the  first  regu- 
lar Treasurer  of  the  Library  for  thirteen  years ;  Henry 
Cruger,  the  son  and  the  brother  of  a  mayor  of  this  city, 
himself  an  assemblyman  and  later  holding  a  seat  in  the 
council;  David  Clarkson,  of  the  old  dry  goods  firm,  a 
Trustee  for  twenty  years,  and  as  long  a  vestryman  and 
warden  of  Trinity  parish ;  Gabriel  Ludlow,  clerk  of  the 
assembly  for  an  extended  term  and  for  nearly  a  genera- 
tion a  vestryman  of  Old  Trinity;  and  Peter  Keteltas, 
identified  as  inseparably  with  the  history  of  the  Dutch 
Church,  a  man  who  "was  not  only  esteemed,  as  he  truly 
was,  an  upright  and  honest  man,  but  enjoyed  the  sin- 
gular felicity  of  passing  through  life  unsuspected  of  an 
unworthy  action."^ 

A  right  gallant  figure  was  the  Hon.  Col.  Oliver  De 

^  Obituary  notice  in  The  New-Tork  Journal,  August  29,  1792. 


164  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

Lancey,  younger  brother  of  the  Heutenant-governor  and 
a  large  landholder  of  the  day.  Preeminently  a  military 
character,  he  yet  was  identified  with  civic  interests, 
serving  for  a  short  time  as  alderman.  Impetuous  and 
intriguing  in  disposition,  he  led  in  all  political  manoeu- 
vering,  though  lacking  the  superb  equipoise  of  his 
brother.  A  member  of  the  council  for  sixteen  years,  he 
maintained  his  allegiance  to  the  crown,  dashing  off  at 
the  head  of  his  own  battalion  under  a  brigadier-gen- 
eral's commission  from  his  Majesty,  never  to  return. 
Alas  for  his  elegant  country-seat  at  Bloomingdale,  to 
go  up  in  pitiless  flames,  and  alas  for  this  illustrious  but 
loyalist  family,  its  great  estates  forever  confiscate,  and 
its  once  proud  station  but  a  local  memory ! 

Not  nearly  so  tragic  a  fate  befell  Goldsbrow  Banyar, 
deputy-secretary  of  the  province  for  many  years,  and  of 
whom  Lieutenant-Governor  Golden  wrote  to  England, 
in  recommending  his  appointment  to  the  council,  that 
there  was  "no  Man  .  .  .  more  usefuU  on  every  account," 
nor  "so  long  conversant  in  public  afl'airs."  At  the  out- 
break of  the  Revolution  he  retired  quietly  to  Rhinebeck 
and  later  to  Albany,  where  he  peacefully  ended  his  days 
at  a  great  age.  He  served  as  first  president  of  the 
famous  British- American  St.  George's  Society;  while 
his  trusteeship  in  the  Library  covered  thirteen  years. 

Resuming  our  narrative,  an  item  of  note  is  the  ap- 
pointment of  a  regular  Librarian.  On  May  16,  1757, 
the  board  met  at  "Scotch  Johnny's,"^  a  place  of  refresh- 
ment charmingly  situated  near  the  waterside  at  White- 
hall,  when   and  where,    "M^   Benj:    Hildreth   having 


*John  Thompson,  tavern  keeper  ferry  had  been  started  to  Staten 
at  the  Sign  of  the  Crown  and  Thistle  Island,  then  having  a  population  of 
at  Whitehall  slip,  where  in   1755  a       about  2300. 


FIRST  LIBRARIAN  APPOINTED  166 

agreed  to  execute  the  Office  of  a  Library  Keeper,"  the 
sum  of  £6  was  "allowed  him  annually  out  of  the  yearly 
Subscriptions,  for  his  Trouble  &  Care  while  in  that 
Office."  He  was  instructed  to  give  "constant  personal 
Attendance  at  the  Library  room  two  Hours  in  every 
week  vizt  from  2  to  4  o' Clock  on  every  Wednesday 
Afternoon  thro'out  y®  Year,  unless  prevented  by  Sick- 
ness or  other  unavoidable  avocation,  when  he  shall 
depute  some  other  capable  person  to  attend  in  his  stead, 
for  whose  care  of  the  Books  he  shall  be  accountable." 
At  the  same  time,  Gabriel  Ludlow  was  ordered  to 
"desire  his  Son  [George  Duncan  Ludlow],  who  has  for 
a  considerable  time  generously  acted  as  our  Librarian," 
to  get  a  receipt  for  the  books  from  Mr.  Hildreth. 

Quite  in  contradiction  to  this  action  is  a  notice  in  the 
Mercury  of  May  23d,  stating  that  Joseph  Hildreth  was 
"appointed  keeper  of  the  New- York  Library,"  under 
the  same  schedule.  According  to  the  Treasurer's  ac- 
counts, the  first  year's  salary  was  paid  to  the  latter 
individual,  who,  however,  signed  "^.  Jos.  Hildreth,"  as 
though  simply  acting  for  another.  Thereafter,  the 
duties  of  the  position  were  discharged  by  Benjamin 
imtil  September,  1765. 

This  first  Librarian  of  the  Society  Library  had  been 
registered  a  freeman  in  January,  1752,  by  occupation  a 
"Distiller."  He  was  the  second  son  of  Benjamin  Hil- 
dreth, "taylor,"^  a  juryman  at  the  famous  Zenger  trial 
in  1735.  The  name  of  Benjamin,  Jr.,  appears  in  pub- 
lished sources  as  having  served  the  community  in  various 
capacities.  In  1746,  as  "Captain,"  he  was  commissioned 
to  transport  some  prisoners  of  war  to  the  French  col- 


1 «, 


'Abstract   of   Wills,"    Liber    13,       tions  for  1894,  P-  233.    His  will  was 
p.  127.    N.  Y.  Hist.  Society  Collec-       proved  March  22,  1738. 


166  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

onies;  seven  years  later,  the  South  ward  chose  him  a 
constable;  and  on  one  occasion  in  1755  he  was  paid  for 
delivering  fuel  to  troops  on  Nutten  (Governor's) 
Island.  Prospering  in  business  "at  the  New  Brick 
Distill-House,  near  Peck's- Slip,"  he  was  living  in  St. 
George's  Square  in  1774,  when,  as  one  of  "the  Principal 
Male  Inhabitants,"  he  signed  a  petition  to  Lieutenant- 
Governor  Golden  for  further  suspension  of  a  law 
prohibiting  the  erection  of  wooden  buildings  in  certain 
parts  of  town.^  His  older  brother,  Joseph,  an  account- 
ant, kept  the  records  of  Trinity  parish  for  nearly  forty 
years,  and  for  as  long  a  time  was  master  of  its  charity 
school. 

In  November,  1756,  and  again  in  March,  1758,  new 
invoices  of  books  were  announced,  at  a  cost  of  £52  and 
£70,  respectively.  Though  much  smaller  than  the  first 
consignment,  they  present  as  wide  a  range  of  interest,  in 
titles,  at  least.  On  the  arrival  of  the  former  of  these 
two.  Trustees  Cruger  and  Ludlow  were  requested  to 
"wait  on"  Captain  Jasper  Farmar  and  Mr.  Jacob 
Franks,  "&  return  them  thanks  of  y^  trustees,  for  their 
Generousity  in  Giving  this  Society  the  freight  of  the 
Books,  sent  for  by  them."  Further,  "the  Use  of  the 
Library,  upon  y®  term's  of  a  Subscriber,"  was  voted  to 
the  captain,— an  early  instance  of  honorary  member- 
ship. 

At  the  March  meeting  of  1758,  WiUiam  Livingston 
"presented  to  y®  Trustees  a  Devise  to  be  engraven  & 
fixed  in  the  Books,"  which  they  "thankfully"  accepted, 
and  ordered  Mr.  Vanderspiegel,  just  appointed  to  the 
"gratis"  office  of  Clerk-and- Treasurer,  to  "get  the  said 
Devise  engraved  &  paisted  in  the  Books  as  soon  as  he 

^  Valentine's  Marmal  of  the  Corporation  for  1850,  p.  427  et  seq. 


LIBRARY'S  FIRST  BOOKPLATE  167 

conveniently  can."  Such  was  the  origin  of  the  Society- 
Library's  first  bookplate,  made  within  a  few  months  by 
Elisha  Gallaudet,  presmnably  from  the  suggested 
design  of  Mr.  Livingston.^ 

Further  directions  were  at  the  same  time  given  to  the 
new  incumbent  of  the  double  office,  "to  get  aU  the  Books 
Number'd  in  Gilt  Letters,"  and  to  "immediately  order  a 
new  Catalogue  .  .  .  printed,  and  .  .  furnish  every 
Subscriber  with  a  Copy."  Lastly,  he  was  to  send  a  copy 
to  John  Ward,  the  London  agent,  "and  desire  him, 
when  ever  he  observes  any  Sett  of  Books  want  to  be  com- 
pleated,  to  take  particular  care  to  supply  the  additional 
Vol?  by  the  first  Ship  after  their  publication." 

That  this  last  commission  was  executed  in  due  season 
by  the  Treasurer- Clerk  is  proved  by  some  memoranda 
written  in  the  sole  copy  of  the  issue  that  has  come  down 
the  years.^  This  diminutive,  paper-covered  pamphlet  of 
twenty- four  pages  was  presented  to  the  Library,  Janu- 
ary 25,  1865,  by  the  Hon.  Horatio  Seymoiu'  of  New 

*A  receipt,  signed  "E  Gallaudet"  support  the   frame,   standing  upon 

and  dated  Jiily  26,  1758,  shows  that  the   ribbon   which   bears   the   name; 

the  artist  was  paid  £3  10«  6d  "for  above  the  frame  sits  Apollo  with  his 

Engraving  a  Copper  Plate  for  the  broad  back  to  the  full-shining  sun; 

New    York    Society    Library."    On  clouds  which  resemble  toy  balloons 

Nov.  29,  1758,  Gerardus  Duyckinck,  rise  about  him.     Beneath  the  frame 

stationer,  receipted  a  bill  of  £3  13*,  appear  the  outskirts  of  a  city,  with 

"for  Striking  oflF  One  Thousand  im-  spires   and   towers   visible;   directly 

pressions  from  Copper  Plate";  and  under  this  is  the  word  'A^vai  (pre- 

on  the  same  date  Joseph  Hildreth  sumably  to  suggest  that  New  York 

acknowledged   receipt  of   18*,   "for  City   was    the   modern    Athens);    a 

pasting  devices  in  ye  Books."     Fol-  closed   chest   with   a   lighted   candle 

lowing  is  a  description  of  the  plate,  upon  it  has  these  words  on  it,  sed  in 

appearing  in  American  Book-Plates  candelabro,  and  an  open  book  bears 

(Charles  Dexter  Allen.     New  York,  across  its  face  the  motto,  Nosce  teip- 

1894),  p.  255:  "This  plate  is  armorial  sum.     Signed,  E.  Gallaudet.  8c.    II- 

in  form,  but  presents  no  real  arms.  lustrated  in  'Ex  Libris  Journal,'  Vol. 

The  central  frame,  of  Chippendale  III,  p.  141." 

design,    contains    four    quarterings,  ^A    Catalogue   of   the   Books   he- 

which  represent  the  arts  of  Astron-  longing    to    the    New-York    Society 

omy.  Navigation,  Geography,  Mathe-  Library.    New- York:    Printed    and 

matics,  and  Literature;  Religion  also  Sold  by  H.  Gaine,  at  the  Bible  and 

is  represented.  Mercury  and  Minerva  Crown,  in  Hanover-Square. 


168  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

York,  a  special  vote  of  thanks  being  at  once  accorded 
him  by  the  delighted  Trustees.  Though  its  title-page 
bears  no  date,  a  list  of  new  subscribers  at  the  back, 
penned  by  either  Mr.  Vanderspiegel  or  the  Librarian, 
was  begun  "13  Sept^  1758."    The  total  number  of  vol- 


1 

^^ 

mB 

JJ 

m^ 

-^ps 

^^^^ 

^ 

W^^^' 

^^..^^CXTSk  't^J^ 

-y-^,.. 

First  bookplate  of  the  Society  Library,  engraved  by  Gallaudet 
in  1758  (facsimile  size).    See  pp.  166-167. 


LIBRARY  OPEN  TWICE  WEEKLY  169 

umes  here  listed  is  859,  showing  that  the  collection  was 
slowly  growing.  Of  the  membership  no  definite  state- 
ment can  be  made,  for  the  roll  as  printed  is  identical  with 
that  inscribed  in  the  minutes  in  1754,  evidently  copied 
from  the  first  published  list  without  additions  or  correc- 
tions, inasmuch  as  Joseph  Murray,  for  one,  had  died  the 
year  before. 

Preceding  the  catalogue  proper  comes  an  "Advertise- 
ment," containing  "The  Conditions  for  the  Loan  of 
Books";  the  hours  as  last  stated,  from  two  to  four  on 
Wednesdays ;  and  the  date  of  the  annual  election  at  the 
Exchange,  "when  Gentlemen  should  come  prepar'd  to 
pay  their  Yearly  Subscription,  which  is  ten  Shillings." 
A  special  "N.  B."  announces  that  "Books  marked  thus 
*  in  the  following  Catalogue,  are  an  additional  Impor- 
tation per  the  Charles,  Captain  Jacklyn."^  The  titles, 
arranged  in  alphabetical  order  only  by  the  initial  letter, 
are  further  divided  into  groups  according  to  fold,  first 
the  folios,  from  A  to  Z,  and  so  on. 

Doubtless  in  response  to  a  growing  demand,  it  was 
voted  in  February,  1759,  "that  the  Library  be  opened 
Twice  a  Week";  but  no  corresponding  consideration 
was  shown  the  Librarian  in  a  resolve  that,  "unless  the 
Keeper  will  Attend  that  Service  for  the  Same  Salary 
heretofore  paid,  M^  John  Vanderspiegel  have  Leaue  to 
appoint  another  that  will."  Without  a  murmur,  so  far 
as  the  records  tell,  Mr.  Hildreth  continued  at  his  post 
under  double  hours,  notice  of  his  "Attendance  every  Mon- 
day and  Thursday,  from  half  an  Hour  after  Eleven,  to 
one  o'clock,"  appearing  in  the  local  papers  for  May. 

^  There  are  55  such  asterisks;  while  for  the  Fraight  of  a  Case  of  Printed 

a  page  of  accounts  in  the  minutes  Books  from  London  to  New  York  in 

shows  this  confirmatory  item:  "Rec'd  the  Ship   Charles    (and   Nine  pence 

of  John  V.  D.  Spiegel  Two  pounds  for  Entry).    Edmd  Jacklyne." 


170  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

From  time  to  time,  as  funds  accumulated,  additional 
works  were  ordered  from  abroad,  the  lists  being  com- 
piled from  "catalogues"  of  suggested  books  required  of 
each  Trustee.  One  such  list  met  with  a  fate  happily 
withheld  from  any  actual  consignments  amid  the  for- 
tunes of  war;  for  in  May,  1761,  the  Treasurer  was 
asked  to  "Send  to  M^?  Ward,  Or  to  Such  Other  Person 
as  He  Shall  think  fit,  in  London,  for  the  Books  men- 
tioned in  the  Catalogue,  formerly  Sent  John  Ward,  and 
taken  by  the  Enemy." 

In  consequence  of  these  accessions,  of  the  same  gen- 
eral character  as  the  original  collection,  a  third  printed 
catalogue  was  necessitated  and  duly  appeared  in 
August,  1761.  A  single  specimen  of  this  publication  of 
200  copies  is  also  in  the  possession  of  the  Society  Li- 
brary; it  too  is  from  the  press  of  Hugh  Gaine,^  and 
similar  in  all  respects  to  the  last,  being  likewise  undated. 
According  to  its  "Advertisement,"  the  Library  hours 
are  continued  as  before.  The  list  of  subscribers  is  again 
identical  with  those  in  former  catalogues,  a  strange 
recurrence ;  it  must  have  been  repeated  simply  to  put  on 
record  the  names  of  the  original  shareholders,  though 
one  would  expect  a  full  list  of  up-to-date  members  in 
full  standing.  The  total  nmnber  of  volumes,  their  titles 
arranged  alphabetically  and  with  more  care  this  time, 
is  1018,  a  gain  of  159  in  three  years.  One  title  in  partic- 
ular is  of  interest,  in  connection  with  the  story  of  that 
survivor  of  the  Trinity  Parish  Library,  now  in  the  So- 
ciety Library,— a  set  of  "Clarendon's  History  of  the 
Rebellion." 

A  very  noticeable  omission  in  this  last  catalogue  is  the 

^A  I  Catalogue  \  of  the  |  Books  \  be-       Gaine,  at  the  Bible  and  Crown,  in 
longing    to    the  |  New-York    Society       Ha-|nover-Square. 
Library.  \  New- York:  |  Printed  by  H. 


BOARD  MEETS  AT  FRAUNCES'  TAVERN      171 

schedule  of  terms  for  non-subscribers.  In  May  of  that 
year  the  board  had  directed  the  Librarian  "not  to  Suffer 
any  Person  not  a  Subscriber  to  have  any  Book  Out  of 
the  Library  for  the  Future,"  because  many  books 
"hired"  by  them  had  been  "greatly  injured  and 
Abused."  At  the  same  time,  a  committee  was  charged 
to  "See  whether  Any  and  what  Books  are  lost  Or  Miss- 
ing," and  to  "Advertise  Such  Books  as  Shall  be  found 
Missing."  Lastly,  the  Treasurer  was  authorized  to  em- 
ploy a  collector,  the  first  mention  of  such  an  assistant, 
at  the  modest  remuneration  of  "Ninepence  in  the 
Pound."  His  accounts  show  that  this  work  was  regu- 
larly performed  by  Librarian  Hildreth. 

Trustee  meetings  continued  to  be  held  in  itinerant 
fashion  at  one  and  another  of  the  public  houses.  It  is 
gratifying  to  one's  curiosity  to  find  that  the  board  pa- 
tronized our  celebrated  Fraunces'  Tavern,  forever  re- 
nowned as  the  scene  of  Washington's  "Farewell"  to  his 
officers.  On  March  9,  1764,  the  Trustees  assembled  "at 
the  House  of  M^  Samuel  Francis,"^  as  it  is  politely  ex- 
pressed in  the  minutes.  The  list  of  books,  then  "added 
and  sent  for,"  may  be  quoted  in  full  to  show  their  char- 
acter, as  well  as  the  constant  attention  paid  to  enlarging 
the  collection.    They  are  thus  entered  in  the  records : 

Swift's  Works  latest  &  best  Edition  with  Cutts;  Lady  Mary 
Worthly  Montague's  Letters  or  Travels ;  Elements  of  Criticism 
by  Lord  Keams ;  Broughton's  History  of  All  Religions ;  All  the 
Volumes  of  Warburton's  divine  Legation  of  Moses,  succeeding 
the  fourth  Volume  if  any;  Commons  Debates,  1667-1694 ;  Mon- 

^  According  to   newspaper  adver-  1907  the  historic  structure  was  re- 

tisements,  "Samuel  Frances*'  was  at  stored  by  the  Society  of  the  Sons 

that  time  innkeeper  "at  the  Sign  of  of  the   Revolution,   and  to-day  old 

the    Queen's    Head,    near    the    Ex-  Fraunces'    Tavern    looks    as    it    did 

change"  on  Broad  street,  corner  of  when  "Black  Sam,"  its  West  Indian 

Queen     (Pearl).    "Within    the    year  proprietor,  flourished. 


172         THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

taign's  Essays;  St  Evremont;  Dodly's  Collection  of  Poems; 
Reflections  on  the  Rise  and  fall  of  Ancient  Republicks  adapted 
to  the  present  state  of  G  Britain  by  E.  Worthly  Montague 
Esq^;  The  Present  State  of  Europe  by  John  Campbell  Esq^; 
The  Duke  of  Sully's  Memoirs ;  Kempf er's  History  of  Japan ; 
Levy's  Roman  History  in  English,  the  best  Edition;  An  Ac- 
count of  the  European  Settlements  in  America  &9;  The  Works 
of  Daniel  Defoe;  Clarendon's  History  of  His  own  Life;  The 
Adventurer;  The  Connoisure;  Humes  Political  Discoveries; 
Voyages  from  Asia  to  America  for  Compleating  the  Discoveries 
of  the  North  West  Coast  of  America  translated  from  the  High 
Dutch  of  S.  Muller  by  Thomas  JefFery's  with  the  Maps;  All 
Sheridan's  Works;  Fuller's  Gymnastic  Exercises;  Montesqui's 
Persian  Letters. — All  Lettered  on  the  Backs. 

Although  at  this  time,  it  will  be  recalled,  the  old 
Corporation  Library  was  taking  a  repose  of  two  years 
in  storage,^  pending  extensive  repairs  to  the  City  Hall, 
there  is  nothing  in  the  Library  minutes  to  prove  that  its 
collection  was  at  all  disturbed.  The  Librarian  continued 
to  draw  his  salary  regularly,  while  Trustee  meetings  and 
annual  elections  were  held  as  usual,  at  taverns  or  at  the 
Exchange.  That  the  institution  was  contributing  its 
share  toward  these  same  improvements  is  inferable 
from  this  item  in  the  accounts:  "To  Cash  p^  Andrew 
Gautier  for  Work  Done  at  the  Library  Room  .  .  . 
15?,"  dated  March  26,  1764.  Again,  just  a  year  later, 
Treasurer  Vanderspiegel  records:  "To  Cash  p^  Clean- 
ing the  Library  Room  &  Carting  Books  from  my  House 
to  the  Library  Room  ...  10?  9^"  At  first  sight  this 
last  entry  might  seem  to  imply  that  the  Society  Li- 
brary's books  had  also  been  temporarily  removed;  but 
the  smallness  of  the  item,  coupled  with  the  fact  that  a 
new  consignment  of  130  volumes  had  just  arrived  from 
London,  makes  that  theory  the  less  tenable. 

^  See  p.  79. 


MISSING  BOOKS  ADVERTISED  173 

At  all  events,  by  the  middle  of  September,  1765, 
Thomas  Jackson,  "Master  of  the  Academy  in  the  Ex- 
change," had  begim  his  duties  as  Librarian  of  both 
Libraries  in  the  City  Hall.  By  the  Common  Council  he 
was  paid  £4  a  year  "for  his  Trouble,"  and  he  received 
from  the  Trustees  of  the  Society  Library  the  further 
sum  of  £6  per  annum.  The  two  collections  were  to  be 
open  to  the  public  as  before,  on  Mondays  and  Thursdays 
from  11 :  30  to  one  o'clock.  Inasmuch  as  the  advertise- 
ment in  the  Gazette  for  September  19,  1765,  states  no 
terms  for  loans,  it  is  probable  that  the  Trustees  had  made 
no  change  since  their  by-law  of  June,  1755,  repeated  in 
the  Catalogues  of  1758  and  1761.  The  rates  charged  by 
the  Corporation  Library  have  already  been  quoted.^ 

This  same  Gazette  notice  reports  that  the  Society 
Library  then  had  "a  large  well  chosen  collection  of  the 
most  useful  modern  books,  with  a  considerable  late  addi- 
tion, of  which  a  catalogue  will  be  speedily  pubUshed, 
that  the  subscribers  may  stitch  in  with  their  former 
catalogues."  Sad  to  relate,  the  surviving  copies  of  those 
earlier  publications  contain  not  this  supplement,  printed 
in  the  fall  of  1766  by  Hugh  Gaine.  It  may,  however, 
have  become  parted  from  their  company,  for  their  pres- 
ent condition  might  properly  be  termed  i^nstitched ! 
The  interesting  statement  then  follows  that  "A  share  in 
this  Library  is  now  worth  10  1.  10  s.,"  which  quotation 
indicates  increased  market  valuation.  Further  on  ap- 
pears this  list  of  books,  advertised  as  "missing": 

Ludlow's  memoirs,  fol.  Wood's  institutes  of  common  law,  fol. 
Hogarth's  analysis,  4to,  Cowley's  works,  vol.  1st.  Shakespear, 
vol.  2d.  Rolt  of  the  late  war,  vol.  4th.  Clogher's  journal. 
Life  of  Richlieu,  2  vols.    De  la  Sale's  voyages.     Henepin's  trav- 

^  See  p.  79. 


174  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

els.  Life  of  Sir  Matthew  Hale,  12mo.  Life  of  the  duke  of 
Marlborough.  Thompson's  travels.  Voyage  to  Peru.  Chris- 
tian hero.  Conclusion  of  bishop  Burnet's  history.  Adventurer, 
vol.  4th.  Select  trials  at  the  Old  Bailey,  vol.  3d.  Rowe's  works, 
vol.  2d. 

Contrary  to  custom,  but  perhaps  out  of  deference  to 
the  engagements  of  Mayor  Hicks,  one  of  their  number, 
the  Trustees  met  on  December  17, 1766,  "in  the  Library- 
Room  at  the  City  Hall."  After  ordering  Treasurer 
Vanderspiegel  to  pay  all  salary  arrears  to  Messrs.  Ben- 
jamin Hildreth  and  Thomas  Jackson,  it  was  voted  that 
the  Librarian  thenceforth  be  paid  quarterly.  There- 
upon, that  officer  was  requested  "to  observe  punctually" 
a  certain  "standing  Rule"  of  the  Library  as  to  the  limita- 
tion of  its  privileges  to  delinquents.  Next  they  acknow- 
ledged from  Messrs.  Robert  Barclay  and  Daniel  Mil- 
dred, "in  Name  of  the  Society  of  Friends  at  London 
.  .  .  Eight  Volumes  of  the  principal  Writings  for  that 
People."  And  lastly  Messrs.  Vanderspiegel,  W.  Living- 
ston and  Rutherford  were  deputed  to  prepare  "a  List  of 
the  new  Books  now  proposed  to  be  sent  for,  and  to 
recommend  to  their  Correspondent  at  London  to  send 
the  Books  as  mentioned  in  the  Order  of  the  List  as  far 
as  the  Money  in  the  Hands  of  the  Treasurer  will  pay 
for."  This  measure  had  been  announced  in  the  Mercury 
of  December  15th  as  the  chief  object  of  assembling,  and 
"all  the  Proprietors"  were  urged  "in  the  mean  Time  to 
send  a  Catalogue  of  such  Books  as  they  think  proper  for 
that  Purpose  to  Mr.  Jackson,  the  Librarian,  to  be  then 
submitted  to  the  Judgement  of  the  Trustees." 

For  many  years  no  mention  was  made  of  domestic 
purchases  of  books.  But  in  February,  1770,  an  order 
was  given  to  James  Rivington,  printer,  publisher  of 


BOOKS  OBTAINED  THROUGH  RIVINGTON     175 

Rivington's  New-York  Gazetteer,  and  a  bookseller  as 
well,  at  his  "open  and  uninfluenced  Press,  fronting 
Hanover- Square";  and  a  committee  was  asked  to 
"Make  a  fair  List  of  such  books  as  are  Agreed  on  to 
be  purchas^  &  in  case  they  cannot  be  purchased  here 
Cheeper  or  as  Cheep  as  they  Can  be  sent  for, 
that  then  M^  Vanderspiegel  do  send  for  them,"— the 
minute  being  self-explanatory  as  to  why  local  dealers 
had  not  been  patronized  hitherto.  Thenceforth,  until 
the  Revolution  summarily  closed  all  accounts,  Mr.  Riv- 
ington,  together  with  "some  Bookseller  in  London," 
played  no  minor  part  in  supplying  needs  of  the  institu- 
tion. Over  a  year  after  this  incident,  a  list  of  books, 
"lately  received"  through  Rivington's  agency,  appeared 
in  Gaine's  Gazette  and  Mercury  of  April  15,  1771,  as 
follows  : 

Handmaid  to  Arts,  Anderson  on  Commerce,  Hook's  Roman 
History,  Fitzosborne's  Letters,  Smith's  moral  Sentiments,  Fer- 
guson on  civil  Society,  Dalrymple  on  Feudal  Property,  Annual 
Register,  Delaney's  Revelation  examined  with  Candour,  Gerard 
on  Taste,  Felton  on  the  Classics,  Reid  on  the  Mind,  Ferguson's 
Astronomy,  Ferguson's  Lectures,  Burk  on  the  Sublime,  Bio- 
graphical Dictionary,  Vatel's  Law  of  Nations. 

During  the  brief  space  of  time  remaining  before  the 
outbreak  of  war,  the  Trustees  continued  to  assemble  for 
deliberation  and  refreshment  at  Widow  Brock's  wayside 
inn,  which  stood  "near  the  old  City  Hall  in  Wall- 
street,"  the  newspapers  tell.  But  little  business  appears 
to  have  been  transacted,  beyond  looking  out  for  missing 
books,  contracting  for  new  ones,  and  regulating  the 
duration  of  loans.  In  February,  1770,  it  was  enacted 
that  a  folio  might  be  "detained"  six  weeks;  a  quarto, 
four;  an  octavo,  three;  and  a  duodecimo,  two  weeks. 


176  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

further  retention  entailing  a  "forfitt"  of  four,  three, 
and  two  pence  and  "one  penney"  a  day,  respectively. 

Within  these  years  several  changes  took  place  in  the 
incumbency  of  the  Librarian's  office.  Thomas  Jackson, 
appointed  to  the  two-fold  charge  of  the  Society  Library 
and  the  old  Corporation  Library  in  September,  1765, 
was  a  man  of  cultivation  and  ability.  In  1762  he  had 
conducted  on  Wall  street  a  private  classical  school,^ 
which,  in  consequence  of  success,  he  was  encouraged  to 
remove,  in  May,  1765,  to  more  pretentious  quarters  in 
the  Exchange,  "the  best  house  in  town  for  a  publick 
school," 2  "at  the  Rent  of  Sixty  Pounds."'  Here  he 
entered  into  a  brief  partnership  with  Peter  Wilson,  "a 
young  gentleman,  who  with  the  greatest  approbation, 
finished  a  regular  course  of  education  in  the  University 
of  Aberdeen,  and  also  assisted  for  two  years,  to  great 
satisfaction,  in  teaching."^  This  is  an  early  allusion  to 
one  of  the  leading  educators  of  his  time,  afterward  to 
serve  for  many  years  as  a  Trustee  of  the  Society 
Library.  The  pair  advertised  an  "Academy"  of  instruc- 
tion in  "all  branches  of  useful  education,"  for  "gentle- 
men and  ladies  of  eight  years  old  and  upwards." 
Several  months  later,  coincidentally  with  his  new  Li- 
brary duties,  this  active  man  started  another  enterprise, 
heralded  in  the  Mercury  of  September  30th  as  follows: 

AN  evening  school,  for  the  greater  convenience  of  young  peo- 
^  pie,  will  be  opened  this  evening  Sept.  30,  in  Mr.  Jackson's 
academy,  at  the  Exchange;  where  will  be  taught,  reading, 
writing,  cyphering,  book-keeping,  navigation,  geography  and 

*  History  of  the  School  of  the  Col-  ^  The   New-York   Gazette;   or   the 

legiate    Reformed    Dutch    Church.       Weekly  Post-Boy,  May  2,  1765. 
New  York,  1883.    P.  63.  '  Minutes  of  the  Common  Council, 

vol.  VI,  p.  409. 


LIBRARIAN  THOMAS  JACKSON  177 

algebra.     Punctual  attendance  will  be  given,  and  proper  pains 
taken  for  the  benefit  of  the  scholars. 

While  residing  in  New  York,  Mr.  Jackson  was  a 
devoted  member  of  the  English  Presbyterian  Church, 
which  he  served  as  elder  and  as  clerk  of  the  session. 
With  others,  including  William  Smith,  Garrat  Noel 
and  Peter  Van  Brugh  Livingston,  elders,  and  William 
Smith,  Jr.,  and  John  Morin  Scott,  trustees,  he  formu- 
lated a  petition  to  the  city  fathers  in  1766  for  "the 
Angular  Piece  of  Ground,"^  on  which  the  "Old  Brick" 
Church  was  so  long  to  stand.  The  time  and  occasion  of 
his  leaving  New  York  are  thus  recorded  in  the  ancient 
"Session  Book,"  under  date  of  August  26,  1768:  "M^ 
Thomas  Jackson  a  worthy  Member  of  this  Session,  hav- 
ing applyed  himself  to  the  Ministry  &  removed  out  of 
the  City,  is  no  longer  considered  a  Member  of  this  Judi- 
catiu'e."  So  far  as  his  Library  work  was  concerned,  he 
seems  to  have  employed  a  deputy  at  the  last,  as  the 
Treasurer's  records  show  that  the  usual  £6  for  the  year 
ending  May  1,  1768,  was  paid  to  one  Alexander  Miller, 
"for  M^  Tho^  Jackson."  During  the  next  six  years  the 
post  of  Librarian  was  held  by  James  Wilmot. 

Throughout  these  years  the  subscribers  had  met  regu- 
larly on  the  last  Tuesday  in  April,^— as  has  been  the 
practice  ever  since,— though  at  varying  times  of  day, 
the  hour  for  the  first  decade  and  more  being  eleven  in  the 
forenoon.  No  further  contests  appear  to  have  arisen, 
and,  as  has  been  said,  the  old  board  was  usually  reelected. 

^Minutes  of  the  Common  Council,  usual  hour,  at  the  Exchange,  when 

vol.  VII,  pp.  5-6,  8-12.  "some     matters     of    importance"— 

'  On  one  occasion,  in  1771,  a  notice  probably  the  discussion  of  a  charter 
was  issued  in  Gaine's  Gazette  and  —were  to  be  "proposed."  A  week 
Mercury  of  April  15th,  calling  the  later,  however,  members  were  prop- 
annual  meeting  for  the  16th,  at  the  erly  advised  of  the  "Mistake." 


178  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

The  last  act  of  moment  to  chronicle  for  this  first  period 
in  the  history  of  the  Society  Library  is  the  appoint- 
ment, in  February,  1771,  of  Samuel  Jones,  elected  a 
Trustee  the  preceding  April,  as  Treasiu-er  to  succeed 
John  Vanderspiegel,  deceased.^  In  passing,  it  will  be 
observed  that  the  clause  in  the  original  Articles,  forbid- 
ding a  Trustee  to  hold  the  office  of  Treasurer,  had  been 
systematically  ignored  from  the  beginning.  It  had 
doubtless  been  found  far  easier  in  the  management  to 
have  that  officer  a  member  of  the  board;  while  any 
apprehensions  that  framers  of  the  Articles  may  have 
entertained  regarding  proper  disposal  of  the  funds  had 
evidently  not  been  shared  by  members  at  large,  when 
once  the  machinery  of  administration  had  been  set  in 
motion. 


^  The  Gazette  of  Feb.  4,  1771,  con- 
tained a  summons  to  "Subscribers 
and  Trustees  of  the  Society  Library" 
to  meet  "at  the  House  of  Mrs. 
Brock"  on  the  12th,  "at  six  o'Clock 
in  the  Evening  to  choose  a  Trustee 


and  elect  a  Treasurer,  in  the  Room 
of  Mr.  Vanderspiegle,  deceased." 
Goldsbrow  Banyar  was  elected  to  the 
board,  which  thereupon  chose  Mr. 
Jones,  Treasurer. 


Ill 

FROM  THE  ROYAL  CHARTER,  1772,  TO  THE  REVOLUTION,  1776 

THERE  is  no  question  that  the  founders  of  the 
Society  Library  looked  forward  with  confidence 
to  a  time,  not  remote,  when  they  should  secure 
their  undertaking  on  the  strong  and  enduring  basis  of 
incorporation.  Such  had  been  the  original  aim,  as 
recorded  by  one  of  their  little  company,  William  Smith, 
Jr.,  that  "it  would  be  very  proper  for  the  Company  to 
have  a  Charter  for  its  Security  and  Encouragement"^; 
yet  more  than  eighteen  years  were  to  elapse  before 
attaining  that  object.  It  is  not  easy,  in  the  lack  of  evi- 
dence, to  offer  a  convincing  explanation  of  this  apparent 
and  protracted  indifference. 

It  may  be  that  the  strenuous  injection  of  politics  into 
the  enterprise  at  the  start,  let  alone  the  evident  worsting 
of  his  own  party,  may  have  so  disaffected  Lieutenant- 
Governor  De  Lancey  that  he  lost  interest  in  the  Library 
and  could  not  be  induced  to  sanction  its  incorporation. 
Then,  too,  the  international  life-and-death  struggle  for 
mastery  on  the  American  continent  was  absorbing  the 
attention  and  energies  of  provincial  authorities  to  the 
exclusion  of  aught  else,  during  the  first  half  of  this  very 
period. 

^History  of  the  Province  of  New   York.     London,  1757.     P.  195. 

179 


180  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

Nevertheless,  some  gleam  of  hope  must  have  shone  out, 
possibly  from  De  Lancey  himself,  for  in  October,  1759, 
Benjamin  NicoU,  William  Smith,  Jr.,  and  William 
Alexander  were  deputed  to  prepare  "the  Draft  of  a 
Charter  for  Incorporating  the  Society  agreeable  to  the 
Articles  &  Lay  it  before  the  Trustees  with  all  Conveniant 
Speed."  But  this  slight  glimmer  was  extinguished  not 
many  months  later  by  the  sudden  death  of  the  lieuten- 
ant-governor. 

Dr.  Cadwallader  Colden,  who  presently  succeeded  as 
acting  executive,  must  have  entertained  a  prejudice 
against  the  Library.  He  certainly  never  evinced  enough 
interest  even  to  become  a  member,  an  astonishing  fact 
when  his  cultivated  and  scholarly  tastes  are  taken  into 
account.  Always  at  odds  with  his  predecessor,  he  was 
ever  only  too  conscious  of  the  antipathy  also  existing 
between  himself  and  "those  Presbyterian  lawyers,"  as 
he  termed  Livingston,  Smith  and  Scott.  Consequently 
there  was  slim  chance  to  consummate  their  purpose 
throughout  his  term  of  office.  No  encouragement, 
furthermore,  seems  to  have  been  offered  by  successive 
royal  governors,  Monckton,  Moore  and  Dunmore,  dur- 
ing their  brief  tenure. 

Early  in  the  incimabency  of  Governor  Tryon,  how- 
ever, a  renewed  and  successful  attempt  was  finally 
made,  in  an  order  of  December  4,  1771,  "that  M^  Jones 
prepare  a  Draft  of  a  Charter  for  incorporating  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Library  and  lay  it  before  the  Trustees  at  their 
next  meeting."  Besides  the  anticipation  of  executive 
favor,  there  was  yet  another  motive  impelling  to  a 
speedy  accomplishment  of  the  long-deferred  project. 
Oft-times  competition  will  stimulate  to  activity  even  more 
cogently  than  sympathetic  interest  alone.    Possibly  such 


STEPS  TOWARD  INCORPORATION  181 

was  true  in  this  case,  for,  on  the  very  day  before  the 
meeting  just  chronicled,  there  had  been  issued  the  pro- 
spectus of  the  Union  Library  Society  of  New  York/ 
For  more  than  seventeen  years  the  Society  Library  had 
been  the  only  estabHshment  of  its  kind  in  the  community, 
cordially  sanctioned  by  the  city  government  as  well  as 
by  the  general  pubhc;  but  now  a  rival  suddenly  springs 
up  to  contest  its  influence,  if  not  its  very  existence. 

From  the  standing  of  the  sponsors  of  the  new  insti- 
tution, and  in  view  of  the  very  reasonable  charges  ad- 
vertised, the  older  organization  had  clearly  a  serious 
situation  to  face.  Although  the  minutes  record  no 
mention  of  this  event,  or  of  any  apprehensions  on  its 
score,  the  Trustees  were  fully  alive  to  its  import.  Too 
much  careful  planning  and  hard  work  had  been  ex- 
pended in  behalf  of  their  trust  to  lose  ground  now,  when 
so  near  attainment  of  the  long-distant  goal.  Spurred  to 
action,  Incorporation  became  their  slogan. 

At  the  January  meeting  in  1772,  Samuel  Jones  ac- 
cordingly produced  the  desired  draft  of  a  charter,  which 
was  read  and  agreed  upon  by  the  board  after  some  slight 
emendation.  A  petition,  "praying  for  a  Grant  of  the 
Charter,"  was  then  drawn  up  and  signed ;  and  Mr.  Jones 
was  requested  to  present  it  to  the  governor,  after  secur- 
ing the  signatures  of  four  absent  members.  The  first 
volume  of  the  old  records  thereupon  concludes  with 
proclaiming  the  election,  on  the  last  Tuesday  in  April, 
1772,  of  "the  same  Trustees  as  the  last  Year."  A  gap 
of  thirteen  months  stretches  between  the  first  two  books 
of  minutes,  in  which  interval  the  charter  had  passed  the 
provincial  seals,  with  the  signature  of  Governor  William 
Tryon  on  November  9, 1772. 

^  See  Introduction,  pp.  112-118,  120. 


182  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

Well  might  the  second  volume  of  proceedings  open 
with  a  flourish,  amid  sounding  of  trumpets  and  haut- 
boys !  Here  indeed,  if  nowhere  else  in  the  formal  record 
of  events,  a  note  of  self -congratulation  would  assuredly 
be  appropriate.  But  the  laconic  equipoise  of  the  entries 
is  unfailing.  Not  a  trace  of  enthusiasm,  or  even  of  satis- 
faction, is  discernible  in  the  simple  statement  that,  "at 
the  Tavern  kept  by  Sarah  Brock  ...  on  Thursday  the 
seventh  Day  of  January  1773,"  in  the  presence  of  a 
bare  quorum,  "the  Charter  for  the  said  Library  was  pro- 
duced and  read." 

Immediately  following  comes  a  draft  of  the  precious 
docimient  in  full,  covering  some  fifteen  pages  of  the  old 
folio;  in  the  absence  of  the  original  instrument,  addi- 
tional interest  attaches  to  this  contemporary  copy, 
elegantly  written  throughout.  Columbia  University 
fitly  cherishes  to-day  the  actual  charter  granted  to 
King's  College  in  1754  by  Lieutenant-Governor  De 
Lancey,  as  the  representative  of  King  George  II.  No 
less  may  the  Society  of  the  New  York  Hospital  rejoice 
in  possessing  under  glass  its  deed  of  incorporation, 
bestowed  by  the  Earl  of  Dunmore  with  the  sanction  of 
King  George  III  in  1771.  Still  greater  cause  for  com- 
placency have  the  corporations  of  the  Reformed  Dutch 
Church  and  Old  Trinity  in  having  preserved  similarly 
authoritative  evidences  of  legal  establishment,  signed  by 
Governor  Fletcher  in  the  days  of  King  William  III  in 
1696  and  1697,  respectively.  But  the  Society  Library- 
like  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  the  State  of  New 
York,  chartered  in  March,  1770,  under  Lieutenant- 
Governor  Colden— has  suff*ered  irreparable  loss  in  this 
particular  respect.  There  is  no  knowledge  of  the  actual 
destruction  of  the  missing  parchment,  but  the  great 


CONTEMPORARY  COPY  OF  CHARTER         183 


f 


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IP 

ill 


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184  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

hope  that  it  may  sometime  be  restored  grows  ever  less 
with  the  years/ 

Like  other  royal  charters,  this  document  is  mipara- 
graphed,  from  the  salutation  of  the  king,  in  all  his  titled 
majesty,  to  the  signature  of  Governor  Tryon  at  the  end. 
With  stately  pomp  there  comes  first  the  customary 
greeting  from  "George  the  Third,  by  the  Grace  of  God, 
of  Great  Britain,  France  and  Ireland,  King,  Defender 
of  the  Faith,  and  so  forth."  The  preamble  recites  the 
names  of  that  year's  Trustees,  classifying  them  as 
Esquires,  Merchants,  Gentlemen,  and  Physician,  It 
also  includes  extracts  from  their  petition,  which  in  turn 
reads  like  a  recapitulation  of  the  old  Articles  of  1754. 
Still  quoting  the  petition,  the  instrument  continues : 

By  which  Means  the  said  Library  was  become  very  considerable, 
but  would  increase  much  faster,  and  might  be  made  of  greater 
publick  Utility  if  a  Corporation  should  be  formed  for  that  Pur- 
pose. .  .  .  Now  we  taking  into  our  Royal  Consideration  the 
beneficial  Tendency  of  such  an  Institution  within  our  said  City, 
are  graciously  pleased  to  grant  the  said  humble  Request  of  our 
said  loving  Subjects.  Know  ye  therefore,  That  we  of  our 
especial  Grace,  certain  Knowledge  and  mere  Motion,  have  willed, 
given,  granted,  ordained,  constituted  and  appointed,  and  by 
these  Presents,  Do  will,  give,  grant,  ordain,  constitute  and  ap- 
point, That  the  said  .  .  .  [naming  the  twelve  Trustees  and  then 
other  members,  to  include  seventeen  Esquires^  one  Doctor  of 
Divinity,  twenty  Merchants,  three  Gentlemen,  two  Distillers,  one 
Printer,  one  Apothecary,  one  Surgeon,  and  one  Widow, — fifty- 
nine  in  all]  :  Being  such  of  the  Subscribers  to  the  said  Library, 

^  There  is  no  record  of  the  time  of  course  bears  no  signatures.  The 
when  the  charter  disappeared.  It  is  Executive  Council  minutes  (MS.) 
said  to  have  been  in  the  Library's  record  receipt  of  a  petition  for  in- 
possession  as  late  at  1850.  The  origi-  corporation  under  date  of  Sept.  8, 
nal  draft  of  the  document,  contain-  1772;  but  the  original  paper  is  miss- 
ing 16  pp.  folio,  is  in  vol.  5  (1772-  ing.  See  Calendar  of  Council 
1775)  of  "Original  Drafts  of  Land  Minutes,  1668-1783.  Albany,  1902. 
Patents,"  State  Library,  Albany.    It  P.  567. 


CORPORATE  RIGHTS  186 

or  their  Assigns,  as  have  not  only  paid  the  said  Sum  of  Five 
Pounds,  but  also  the  said  Ten  Shillings  yearly,  ever  since;  and 
such  other  Persons  as  shall  be  hereafter  admitted  Members  of 
the  Corporation  hereby  erected,  be,  and  for  ever  hereafter  shall 
be  by  Virtue  of  these  Presents,  One  Body  Corporate  and  Politic 
in  Deed,  Fact  and  Name,  by  the  Name,  Stile,  and  Title  of  The 
Teustees  of  the  NEW-YORK  Society  Library. 

Next  are  conferred  unreservedly  all  the  rights  inci- 
dent to  a  corporation,  including  perpetual  succession, 
capacity  to  sue  and  to  be  sued,  the  holding  of  property, 
possession  of  a  seal,  and  the  liberty  to  erect  a  Library 
building  and  other  structures.  There  should  continue  to 
be,  it  goes  on  to  state,  twelve  Trustees  to  conduct  the 
affairs  of  the  institution;  and  that,  as  hitherto,  on  the 
last  Tuesday  in  April,  "yearly  and  every  Year  for  ever 
thereafter,"  the  members  should  meet  at  the  Exchange 
in  Broad  street,  "or  at  some  other  convenient  Place  in 
our  said  City  of  New  York,"  to  elect  Trustees. 

Then  come  provisions  for  filling  vacancies  in  the 
board,  for  calling  meetings,  for  determining  a  quorum, 
for  passing,  amending  or  repealing  by-laws,— not  to  be 
repugnant  to  the  statutes  of  New  York  or  to  the  laws  of 
England,— and  for  appointing  a  Treasurer,  a  Secretary 
and  a  Librarian.  Members  were  to  be  privileged  to  sell, 
assign  or  devise  their  rights,  such  assigns  to  become 
members  in  full  standing,  but  only  when  owning  whole 
shares;  and  the  Trustees  might  elect  as  members  of  the 
corporation  whom  they  should  think  proper.  After 
regulating  the  annual  dues  (ten  shillings),  the  penalties 
for  arrears,  forfeitures,  etc.,  it  is  stated  in  conclusion 
that  the  charter  should  be  "deemed,  adjudged  and  con- 
strued in  all  Cases,  most  favourably  and  for  the  best 
Benefit  and  Advantage  of  our  said  Corporation." 


186  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

There  is  afforded  here  for  the  first  time  an  opportu- 
nity to  compare  the  membership  with  that  at  the  outset. 
The  fifty-nine  names  mentioned  in  the  charter  show  a 
faUing-ofF  of  exactly  fifty  per  cent,  from  the  original 
subscription  list.  But  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that 
numerous  "rights"  had  been  bequeathed,  or  otherwise 
"alienated,"  during  these  eighteen  years;  while  not  a 
few  members  held  several  shares.  Thus  it  cannot 
be  told  just  how  many  paying  shares  there  were.  Un- 
doubtedly, however,  there  had  not  been  anything  like 
the  substantial  accessions  hoped  for,  if  increase  there 
had  been. 

How  agitated  and  proud  these  sturdy  workers  must 
have  been  to  behold  realized  at  last  their  cherished  hopes 
of  many  years!  Content  to  labor  and  to  wait  for  the 
success  now  attained,  they  must  have  felt  the  happiness 
of  the  moment  well  worth  all  the  weary  planning  and 
the  time  and  money  spent.  It  is  good  to  find  at  least  a 
few  of  the  prime  movers  of  the  undertaking  still  on  the 
board  of  Trustees,  namely,  William  Smith  the  historian, 
Robert  R.  Livingston  and  William  Livingston,  together 
with  John  Watts,  who  had  served,  with  the  exception  of 
but  a  single  year,  from  the  beginning  to  the  now  fast- 
approaching  political  convulsion. 

In  the  first  flush  of  their  triumph  and  increased  im- 
portance, however,  they  were  not  unmindful  of  favors 
received.  Their  initial  act  as  a  corporation  was  to  con- 
fer honorary  membership  upon  Governor  Tryon, 
Attorney- General  John  Tabor  Kempe,  and  William 
Banyar,  nephew  of  Goldsbrow  Banyar,  deputy-secre- 
tary of  the  province,  through  whose  united  instrumen- 
tality the  charter  had  been  gratuitously  granted  and 
passed.    Each  of  the  three  was  to  receive  a  certificate  of 


CATALOGUE  OF  1773  187 

admission,  it  was  voted,  with  the  naive  qualification,  "as 
soon  as  one  shall  be  procured." 

After  a  careful  revision  of  the  by-laws,— the  schedule 
of  loans  and  penalties  being  identical  with  the  last  state- 
ment, but  the  hours  of  attendance  increased  to  three 
days,  Mondays,  Wednesdays  and  Fridays,  from  twelve 
to  two,  "Holy-Days  excepted,"— the  Trustees,  clothed 
in  their  new  powers,  proceeded  to  appoint,  or  really  to 
confirm,  Samuel  Jones  as  Treasurer  and  James  Wilmot 
as  "Keeper  of  the  said  Library."  A  departure  was 
made  in  appointing  Dr.  Samuel  Bard,  Secretary,  an 
office  formerly  identified,  as  "Clerk,"  with  the  treasurer- 
ship.  It  was  then  voted  to  have  the  "Terms  of  Admis- 
sion" published  for  three  weeks  "in  the  News  Paper 
printed  by  Hugh  Gaine,"  who  should  also  have  the  con- 
tract for  printing  the  charter,  by-laws  and  a  fresh 
catalogue.  Finally  the  Treasurer  was  ordered  to  "lay 
before  this  Board  at  the  next  Meeting  a  Device  for  a 
Seal." 

In  compliance  with  the  first  of  these  directions,  a 
notice  that  the  Trustees  had  "obtained  a  Charter  of  In- 
corporation," and  would  "now  admit  new  Members  upon 
Payment  of  Five  Pounds  each,  for  the  Use  of  the  Li- 
brary," appeared  in  The  New-York  Gazette;  and 
the  Weekly  Mercury  for  three  weeks,  beginning  on 
January  11th.  It  also  announced  the  speedy  issuance 
of  a  new  catalogue,  which  was  promptly  forthcoming. 
This  Catalogue  of  1773,  a  copy  of  which  the  Library  is 
so  fortunate  as  to  own,  though  a  larger  affair  than  the 
earlier  issues,  is  yet  but  a  modest  paper-covered  pam- 
phlet of  thirty-six  pages. ^    Eight  pages  are  devoted  to  a 

^  The  Charter,  and  Bye-Laws,  of  to  the  said  Library.  New  York, 
the  New-York  Society  Library;  with  1773.  Gaine's  receipt  shows  that  he 
a  Catalogue  of  the  Books  belonging       was  paid  £10  Ss  for  500  copies. 


188  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

closely  printed  copy  of  the  charter,  and  three  succeeding 
pages  comprehend  revised  "Laws,  Ordinances,  and 
Regulations."  The  catalogue  proper  contains  a  total  of 
1291  volumes,  the  last  accounting  before  their  shameful 
dispersion. 

To  revert  to  the  charter,— some  little  amusement  may 
have  been  excited  at  the  last-named  incorporator,  "Anne 
Waddel,  Widow,"  as  though  that  title  were  her  calling 
in  life!  John  Waddell,  her  husband,  had  been  one  of 
the  original  subscribers  to  the  Library  movement,  and  it 
is  interesting  to  see  how  she  was  here  perpetuating  his  as 
well  as  her  own  regard  for  the  institution.  It  is  also 
noteworthy  that  a  woman's  name  should  have  been 
allowed  to  stand  on  such  a  very  legal  document,  showing 
that  there  was  no  law  to  forbid,  nor,  fully  as  requisite, 
any  social  convention  either.^  As  in  this  instance,  so 
throughout  its  history,  the  Society  Library  has  ever  wel- 
comed women  to  enrolment  as  shareholders,  with  unre- 
stricted access  to  the  shelves. 

It  would  be  needless  to  make  this  trite  statement, 
were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  such  an  attitude  is  quite  in 
contrast  to  that  evinced  by  the  Boston  Athenaeum,  for 
example,  where  no  women  were  allowed  to  consult  books 
prior  to  1829,  nor  for  some  years  thereafter,  save  in  one 
or  two  exceptional  cases.  As  late  as  1856,  Librarian 
Folsom  of  that  institution  reported  it  "as  undesirable, 
that  a  modest  young  woman  should  have  anything  to  do 
with  the  corrupter  portions  of  the  polite  literature.  A 
considerable  portion  of  a  general  library  should  be  to  her 
a  sealed  book."     He  further  asserts  that  the  proposed 

*  Anne  (Kirten)  Waddell,  born  in  interests  (after  his  decease  in  1763) 

1716,  was  a  lady  of  uncommon  abil-  with    great    profit,    until    her    own 

ity  and  force  of  character,  conduct-  death  in  1773. 
ing    her    husband's    large    shipping 


RIVALRY  OF  UNION  LIBRARY  SOCIETY       189 

concession  to  admit  women  to  the  shelves  "would  occa- 
sion frequent  embarrassment  to  modest  men."^ 

Before  continuing  the  narrative,  a  further  word  is 
pertinent  in  regard  to  the  Union  Library  Society.  As 
we  have  seen,^  this  institution  throve  and  bade  fair  to 
become  no  sUght  menace  to  the  prosperity  of  the  Society 
Library.  No  sooner  had  the  latter's  incorporation  been 
announced  in  the  newspapers,  than  the  Directors  of  the 
younger  institution  promptly  published  a  notice,  em- 
phasizing their  moderate  terms,  stating  their  collection 
to  contain  "near  1000  volumes,"  and  claiming  a  member- 
ship of  140  persons,— rather  more  than  double  the  num- 
ber of  shareholders  enumerated  a  few  months  before  in 
the  charter  of  the  Society  Library. 

Furthermore,  the  action  of  the  Common  Council  in 
April,  1774,  allowing  the  Union  Library  Society  to 
deposit  its  books  in  the  same  room  that  held  their  own 
collection,  must  have  been  unspeakably  irritating  to  the 
pride  of  the  Trustees,  so  lately  exalted  by  the  investiture 
of  chartered  rights.  It  was  indeed  but  a  shabby  return 
by  the  city  fathers  for  the  care  of  the  old  Corporation 
Library  during  so  many  years,  for  there  is  no  mention  in 
the  municipal  records  that  the  city  paid  for  a  Librarian 
after  Thomas  Jackson  retired  in  1768.  Truly  the  haz- 
ards of  war  would  then  have  seemed  to  the  Trustees 
hardly  more  insupportable  than  so  forced  and  distasteful 
a  companionship. 

Less  than  thirty  days  after  this  ungracious  act  of  the 
Common  Council,  and  fully  sixteen  months  since  a 
recorded  session  of  the  board,  there  was  held  what 
proved  to  be  the  last  meeting  of  the  Trustees  for  many  a 

^  Report,  March  29,  1856.     MS.  in       Inf/uence  and  History  of  the  Boston 
Boston    Public    Library;    also,    The      Athenceum.     Boston,  1907.     P.  41. 

^  See  Introduction,  pp.  112-118. 


190  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

day.  Eleven  members  constituted  this  gathering,  at  the 
Exchange,  May  9,  1774.  Various  matters  came  up  for 
consideration,  both  retrospectively  and,  as  they  doubtless 
supposed,  for  the  unbroken  future.  In  the  first  place, 
acting  on  previous  instructions,  "the  Treasurer  and 
Secretary  laid  before  the  Trustees  a  Device  for  a  Seal 
of  which  they  approved,"  and  ordered  "to  have  it  imme- 
diately cast  in  Steel." 

Several  cheering  items  next  gladden  the  eye;  the 
treasury  shows  a  balance  of  £116:7:9%;  and  five  new 
members  had  lately  been  enrolled,  including  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Inglis,  fourth  rector  of  Trinity  Church,  the  Rev. 
John  H.  Livingston,  of  the  Dutch  Reformed  commu- 
nion, and  John  Jones,  M.D.,— the  last-named  just 
chosen  a  Trustee,  and  the  second  destined  to  serve  fully 
a  quarter-century  later.  Also  it  was  recorded  that  "M^ 
Sami  Verplank  purchased  the  Share  of  M^  RoW  Crom- 
line  and  paid  up  the  arrears,"— the  first  mention  of  such 
a  transfer  in  the  minutes.  Encouragement  from  these 
evidences  of  prosperity  appears  in  the  single  entry: 
"Ordered,  That  M^  Kettletass  purchase  one  dozen  Win- 
sor  Chairs,  and  two  step  Laders  for  the  use  of  the 
Library." 

Quite  a  notable  departure  from  custom  was  made  in 
a  vote  to  hold  the  annual  meetings  for  the  future  at  the 
City  Hall  instead  of  at  the  Exchange.  Another  by-law, 
then  adopted,  fixed  Trustee  meetings  "for  the  Dispatch 
of  Business  ...  at  the  Library  Room  upon  the  first 
Tuesday  in  y^  months  of  Aprill,  July,  October,  and 
January  at  twelve  o'Clock  at  noon."  After  agreeing 
"to  the  purchase  of  Books  of  wh^  a  Catalogue"  was 
exhibited,  and  voting  that  all  volumes  "wanting  to  com- 
plete old  sets  be  replaced,"  it  was  finally  '"Ordered,  That 


BOOKS  READ  IN  COLONIAL  PERIOD  191 

Doct.  John  Jones,  M^  Kettletass,  M^  Treasurer,  Peter 
Vanschaack,  or  any  three  of  them,  be  a  Committy  to  do 
the  above  Business." 

Having  ascertained  the  character  of  the  original  col- 
lection, and  knowing  who  were  the  early  members  of  the 
Society  Library,  the  natural  wish  follows,  as  the  night 
the  day,  to  learn  something  of  the  actual  handling  of  the 
books ;  who  read  what !  Happily  this  desire  it  is  possible 
to  gratify  to  a  slight  extent,  for  there  remains  a  dis- 
colored rough  draft  of  a  manuscript  catalogue  in  folio, 
without  date  or  cover,  not  untidily  fastened  by  a  once 
blue  ribbon.  Following  some  twenty  of  the  titles  in  a 
fragmentary  fashion  are  jotted  down  the  names  of 
occasional  borrowers  throughout  the  colonial  period,  as 
follows : 

Addison's  Works  4  Vols.  (4*^  Vol.  wanting),  John  Provoost; 
Bacon's  Works,  S  Vols,  (l^t  Vol.  want.),  Basnages  History  of  the 
Jews,  Ab'T^  Depeyster,  Oct^  29,  1767 ;  Columelle  on  Husbandry 
and  Trees,  Ja?  Depeyster  by  Peter  Dubois,  June  15, 1766 ;  Chubb's 
posthumous  Works,  2  Vols.,  Peter  V  B  Livingston,  April  9^ 
1770;  Cicero's  Orations  by  Guthrie,  S  Vols.,  Cornelius  Van 
Home,  7**^  Sept^  1769;  Albers  Lives  of  the  Poets,  5  Vols.  (1^* 
Vol.  wanting),  Edw^  Nicoll,  May  12,  1766;  Cato's  Letters,  4 
Vols.  (1^\  Vol.  wanting),  Phil.  Livingston,  14  March,  1768; 
Franklin  on  Electricity,  Augustus  V  Cortlandt,  August  10, 
1756 ;  Grandison,  7  Vols.,  Nathanl  Marston,  March  13,  1769 ; 
Kiel's  Astronomy,  W°^  Laight,  24  Sept^  1772 ;  Kiesler's  Trav- 
els, 4  Vols.  (1st  Yoi^  wanting),  W°*  Imlay,  March  7,  1753 
[1773  ?]  ;  Maintenon's  Letters,  2  Vols.,  Stephen  D'Lancey,  Sept^ 
22,  1766;  Montague's  Letters,  4  Vols.,  y^  is*  &  2^  W^?  Smith 
Sen^  Ap  28th  i^gg .  Philosophical  Transactions,  10  Vols.,  Ab°i 
Brinckerhoff ;  ancient  History,  10  Vols,  (l^t  Vol.  wantf),  Rob* 
G.  Livingston,  Dec^  19,  1765;  System  of  Geography,  2  Vols., 
Henry  Remsen;  Sheridans  Lectures  on  Elocution,  Jn?  Living- 


19£  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

ston,  Dec^  6,  1768;  Warburton's  Shakespear,  8  Vols,  (y^  gd  & 
6*^  Vols,  want?),  6^^  Vol.,  L.  Cortwright,  October  6^^  1768; 
Whiston's  Theory  of  the  Earth,  Alex^  Cummings,  Dec^  28**? 
1757;  Waller's  Poems,  John  Dies,  Aprl  5,  1762. 

In  accordance  with  the  new  by-law,  notice  of  the 
annual  meeting  and  election  of  1775— "to  be  held  at 
Twelve  o'Clock  at  Noon,  in  the  Library  Room"— was 
duly  inserted  by  Secretary  Bard  in  the  Gazette  for 
April  24th.  But  from  a  minute  of  later  date  it  appears 
that  "no  meeting  of  the  proprietors  for  the  choice  of 
Trustees  was  held  from  the  last  Tuesday  in  April  1774," 
until  December  20,  1788.  Consequently  we  must 
assume  that  the  board  last  elected  continued  in  office, 
"until  other  fit  Persons"  were  "chosen  in  their  Places," 
—to  quote  the  language  of  the  charter.  During  these 
fourteen  years  no  meetings  appear  to  have  been  held; 
and  one  would  think  the  business  of  the  corporation 
wholly  suspended  in  1774,  were  it  not  for  the  above 
mentioned  newspaper  notice  and  certain  memoranda  by 
Treasurer  Jones  in  the  old  minute  books. 

Furthermore,  there  has  survived  a  receipt  for  £5, 
signed  by  George  Murray,  for  "half  a  Year's  Attend- 
ance as  Librarian  from  July  the  6*^  to  Jan^  6th  1776." 
From  the  Treasurer's  meager  accounts  it  appears  that 
Mr.  Murray  had  succeeded  James  Wilmot  on  May  1, 
1774,  at  an  advance  of  £4  a  year,  for  attending  "three 
times  a  Week."  Of  these  two  persons,  little  can  now  be 
told.  James  Wilmot's  name  appears  among  the  3000 
signatures  of  "Principal  Male  Inhabitants"^  in  1774, 
while  George  Murray,  a  Quaker,  kept  a  select  school  on 
Crown  (Liberty)  street,  opposite  the  Friends'  Meeting 

^  See  p.  166». 


APPROACHING  DISRUPTION  193 

House/  He  reopened  this  institution  in  April, 
1783,^  but  died  a  few  months  later  "at  an  advanced 
age."' 

For  aught  now  known  to  the  contrary,  therefore, 
Gteorge  Murray  was  the  last  Librarian  before  the 
Revolution;  while  there  is  nothing  to  prove  that  the 
work  of  the  Library  did  not  continue  as  usual  until 
September,  1776,  save  the  natural  behef ,  as  expressed  in 
the  manuscript  "Matricula"  of  King's  College  for  that 
year,  that  "The  Tiu'bulence  &  Confusion  which  prevail 
in  every  part  of  the  Country  effectually  suppress  ev^ry 
literary  Pursuit."  Still,  a  positive  indication  of  Library- 
activity  appears  in  a  notice  in  the  Mercury,  August  7, 
1775,  calling  for  the  return,  "without  Delay,"  of  some 
thirty-odd  books  "belonging  to  the  New- York  Society 
Library." 

No  little  pathos  may  be  read  into  the  detailed  and 
careful  deliberations  at  the  last  meeting  outlined  above, 
in  view  of  the  fact  that  more  than  fourteen  long  years 
of  stress  and  anxiety  were  to  run  their  course  before 
another  gathering  would  be  held,  at  which,  indeed,  only 
four  of  this  group  would  respond  to  roll-call.  The 
Society  Library,  with  kindred  institutions  of  culture  and 
of  peace,  was  early  to  undergo  suspension  and  well- 
nigh  complete  disruption  at  the  blighting  touch  of  war. 
In  the  record  of  this  last  assembling  of  its  Trustees 
before  the  storm,  however,  no  note  of  apprehension  was 
sounded,  matters  relative  to  the  welfare  of  the  associa- 
tion alone  finding  attention.  It  is  altogether  fitting 
that  the  curtain  should  go  down  with  all  the  actors  in 

^  Nevy  York  City  during  the  Amer-  *  The  New-York  Gazette;  and  the 

ican   Revolution,    New   York,    1861.       Weekly  Mercury,  Apl.  28,  1783. 
P.  21.  ^  Rivington's  Royal  Gazette,  Sept. 

10,  1783. 


194  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

their  proper  places,  conscientiously  playing  their  ap- 
pointed parts. 

What  poor  beleaguered  New  York  suffered  in  the 
throes  of  revolution  it  happily  does  not  fall  within  the 
bounds  of  this  narrative  to  recount.  Possessing  from  its 
situation  one  of  the  chief  strategic  points  in  the  colonies, 
it  was  indeed  a  vantage-ground  to  be  fought  for  desper- 
ately. Within  the  city,  feeling  had  long  been  running 
high  between  malcontents  and  upholders  of  prerogative, 
and  had  voiced  itself  in  repeated  outbreaks  between  the 
ardent  Liberty  Boys  and  his  Majesty's  troops.  The 
British  occupation  of  seven  years  had  good  effect  in 
stopping  these  bickerings  perforce,  but  it  was  none  the 
less  notorious  for  lawless  practices  of  the  soldiery.  A 
spirited  account  of  such  depredations  as  pertain  to  this 
study  has  already  been  quoted  in  connection  with  the 
history  of  King's  College  Library.^ 

Likewise,  in  the  same  section  of  the  present  work,  are 
given  details  of  efforts  on  the  part  of  British  command- 
ers to  accomplish  a  return  of  at  least  a  portion  of  the 
plundered  collections.^  In  commenting  on  these  out- 
rages. Judge  Jones  condescendingly  observes:  "To  do 
justice  even  to  rebels,  let  it  be  here  mentioned  that 
though  they  were  in  full  possession  of  New  York  nearly 
seven  months,  and  had  in  it  at  times  above  40,000  men, 
neither  of  these  libraries  were  ever  meddled  with  (the 
telescope  which  General  Washington  took  excepted)"!* 
In  a  similar  spirit  of  fairness,  therefore,  it  must  be  ad- 
mitted that  the  invaders  were  not  alone  in  the  destruc- 
tion of  books,  though  for  sheer  wantonness  and  cupidity 

^  See  pp.  94-95.  War.     Vol.   II,  p.   137.     This  tele- 

^  See  pp.  95-97.  scope    now    adorns    the    mantel    of 

'  Thomas  Jones.    History  of  New  the  beautiful  Trustees'  Room  in  the 

York     during     the     Revolutionary  Library  of  Columbia  University. 


BOOKS  USED  IN  CARTRIDGE-MAKING        195 

they  stand  unrivaled.  It  is  said  that  in  one  instance  a 
whole  edition  of  the  Rev.  Gilbert  Tennent's  sermon, 
"Defensive  War,"  printed  by  Franklin,  "was  utilized 
by  revolted  colonists  for  the  manufacture  of  musket 
cartridges  to  aid  in  driving  King  George's  Hessian 
mercenaries  off  the  soil,  and  to  establish  American  lib- 
erty in  place  of  foreign  tyranny."^ 

However  this  may  have  been,  the  one  melancholy 
indisputable  fact  remains  that  all  the  Libraries  of  the 
city  were  either  burned  or  looted,  their  precious  contents 
ruthlessly  scattered  to  the  four  winds.  Not  least  among 
them,  the  Society  Library,  the  fruit  of  more  than  twenty 
years  of  planning,  of  labor  and  of  sacrifice,  was  in  a 
twinkling  stricken  seemingly  with  utter  annihilation. 

In  the  eighteen  years  ending  with  1776,  only  ten  new 
names  appear  on  the  board  of  Trustees.  Two  were 
merchants  of  high  repute:  Walter  Rutherford, — styled 
"Gentleman"  in  the  charter, — a  Scotchman  by  birth,  a 
founder  and  for  some  years  president  of  St.  Andrew's 
Society,  an  incorporator  and  later  a  governor  of  the 
New  York  Hospital,  a  brother-in-law  of  the  Earl  of 
Sterling,  was  a  man  of  unblemished  integrity;  as  was 
also  his  associate,  Samuel  Verplanck,  a  scion  of  one  of 
the  oldest  Dutch  families,  a  member  of  the  first  class 
graduated  by  King's  College  in  1758,  a  Wall  Street  im- 
porter and  banker  of  scholarly  tastes,  one  of  the  twenty- 
four  founders  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  a  member 
of  the  "General  Conmiittee  of  One  Hundred"  in  1775, 
a  delegate  to  the  provincial  convention  of  New  York, 
and  a  subscriber  to  the  celebrated  Declaration  of  Asso- 
ciation and  Union  against  the  pretensions  of  Great 

^  The   Memorial   History    of    the    City  of  New-York,  vol.  IV,  p.  115. 


196  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

Britain;  though,  from  dread  of  consequences,  it  is  stated, 
inactive  in  support  of  the  Revolution. 

Three  of  them  have  lent  distinction  to  the  noble  heal- 
ing art:  John  and  Samuel  Bard,  father  and  son,  Phila- 
delphians  by  birth,  though  of  mingled  French  and 
English  ancestry.  Gifted  alike  with  engaging  man- 
ners, unusual  ability  and  capacity  for  hard  work,  they 
numbered  among  their  intimate  friends  Franklin  and 
other  noted  persons  in  America  and  Europe.  They  were 
instrumental  in  securing  a  charter  of  incorporation  for 
a  public  hospital,  and  in  raising  funds  privately  for  its 
support.  Dr.  Samuel  Bard  was  chief  agent  in  founding 
the  first  medical  school  in  New  York,  soon  annexed  to 
the  college.  On  its  staff  for  forty  years,  he  also  served 
as  a  trustee  and  dean  of  its  medical  faculty,  and  was 
likewise  a  vestryman  of  Trinity  parish.  While  the  city 
was  the  seat  of  the  Federal  Government,  he  acted  as 
Washington's  family  physician,  a  circumstance  tending 
to  allay  distrust  aroused  by  his  moderate  course  during 
the  war.  His  services  to  the  Library  cover  an  extended 
term  as  Trustee  and  Secretary. 

The  name  of  John  Jones  long  stood  at  the  head  of 
the  surgical  profession  in  this  coimtry.  A  professor  in 
King's  College,  he  was  a  pioneer  in  introducing  plain 
and  simple  measures  in  place  of  prevailing  methods. 
Removing  to  Philadelphia  and  achieving  renown,  he 
became  the  medical  attendant  and  as  well  the  friend  of 
Dr.  Franklin. 

Half  of  the  number  were  members  of  the  legal 
brotherhood.  Whitehead  Hicks,  fellow-student  with 
William  Livingston  and  William  Smith,  Jr.,  under  the 
latter's  father,  became  an  alderman  and  held  the  mayor- 
alty for  the  long  term  of  nearly  ten  years.    He  resigned 


LEGAL  MEMBERS  OF  THE  BOARD 


197 


for  a  judgeship  in  the  supreme  court,  but,  owing  to  his 
Whig  principles,  never  took  his  seat.  Besides  the  Li- 
brary, he  served  the  Presbyterian  Church  as  a  trustee  for 


CATALOGUE 


B  cro  K  s 


BELOKCINC    TO    THE 


New-York  Society  Library. 


"l^i 


t$bo$oc$3o$bo$oc$(X^ 


N  EW-r  O  RKi 

Printed  and  Sold  byH?,  <Sainf,  at  the  T5ib!e  anlr  (^roUin, 

Earliest  catalogue  of  the  Society  Library,  or  of  any  Library  in  New  York, 
known  to  be  in  existence  (facsimile  size).    See  pp.  167-168. 


198  THE  NEW  YORK  SOCIETY  LIBRARY 

some  years.  Jovial  in  disposition,  he  was  popular  with 
his  associates  at  the  bar  and  with  the  public.  Of  oppos- 
ing views  was  John  Tabor  Kempe,  attorney-general  of 
the  province,  and  long  a  vestryman  and  warden  of  Old 
Trinity.  Removing  to  England  when  the  war  closed, 
he  passed  his  remaining  years  in  poverty  and  neglect, 
his  services  unheeded  by  an  indifferent  sovereign. 

Samuel  Jones,  Treasurer  for  many  years,  was  also  a 
man  of  Tory  sympathies,  but  he  took  no  part  in  the 
war ;  and,  upon  the  consummation  of  peace,  threw  in  his 
lot  with  the  new  nation,  becoming  one  of  the  foremost 
metropolitan  lawyers  and  jurists,  eminent  and  useful  in 
public  life.  He  sat  for  years  in  the  state  legislature, 
both  as  assemblyman  and  as  senator,  at  the  same  time 
holding  such  offices  as  city  recorder  and  state  comp- 
troller, aiding  materially  the  while  in  the  first  revision 
of  the  statutes.  Chancellor  Kent  pays  tribute  to  his 
lucidity  and  accurate  learning,  while  Dr.  David  Hosack 
says:  "Common  consent  has  assigned  him  .  .  .  the 
appellation  of  father  of  the  New  York  bar." 

Peter  Van  Schaack,  LL.D.,  a  leading  member  of 
another  well-known  Knickerbocker  family,  and  for 
years  a  vestryman  of  Trinity  parish,  was  banished  to 
England  early  in  the  war  for  his  loyalist  leanings.  On 
his  return,  in  1785,  he  met  with  a  cordial  reception  from 
his  former  brethren  of  the  bar.  He  conducted  a  law 
school,  where  many  young  men  were  trained  for  the 
profession,  and  he  also  published  several  substantial 
works  on  legal  topics. 

Most  illustrious  of  them  all,  however,  and  destined  to 
a  fame  of  more  than  national  proportions,  shines  forth 
the  name  of  Robert  R.  Livingston,  Jr.,  or  Chancellor 
Livingston,  as  he  was  subsequently  called.    His  career 


CHANCELLOR  LIVINGSTON  199 

is  too  well  known  to  be  dwelt  upon  here.  Carefully- 
brought  up  by  his  father,  graduated  from  King's  Col- 
lege, a  law  partner  of  John  Jay,  he  came  to  hold  in  turn 
the  honorable  offices  of  city  recorder,  assemblyman,  and 
delegate  to  Congress  before  the  war.  Though  a  member 
of  the  congressional  committee  which  drew  up  the  De- 
claration of  Independence,  a  summons  to  the  provincial 
assembly  alone  prevented  his  signing  that  immortal 
document. 

No  less  interested  in  his  church,  he  was  a  warden  of 
Trinity  parish  in  its  trying  season  just  after  the  Revolu- 
tion. The  first  chancellor  of  the  state  of  New  York,  from 
1777  to  1801,  he  was  for  two  years  national  Secretary 
for  Foreign  Affairs,  and  chairman  of  the  state  conven- 
tion that  ratified  the  Federal  Constitution.  It  was  his 
proud  distinction  to  administer  the  oath  of  office  to 
General  Washington  as  first  President  of  the  United 
States.  His  name  is  also  linked  with  that  of  Robert 
Fulton  in  the  latter's  successful  application  of  steam  to 
navigation.  But  his  chief  claim  to  a  nation's  gratitude 
lies  in  his  negotiation,  in  1803,  while  minister  to  France, 
of  the  famous  Louisiana  Purchase,  an  event  whose  cen- 
tennial anniversary  was  but  lately  commemorated  in 
the  great  St.  Louis  Exposition  by  all  the  world. 


VITA 

The  author  of  this  monograph  was  bom  in  Bloomfield,  N.  J., 
November  13,  1875.  His  early  education  was  received  in  the 
public  schools  and  Fr^e  Academy  of  Norwich,  Conn.  He  was 
graduated  A.B.  from  Amherst  College  in  1897,  receiving  the 
A.M.  degree  from  the  same  institution  in  1901.  After  a  sea- 
son's private  teaching  in  Goshen,  N.  Y.,  he  was  instructor  in 
history,  English,  and  Latin  at  Adelphi  Academy,  Brooklyn, 
N.  Y.,  for  four  years.  From  1902  to  1904  he  held  a  University 
scholarship  in  American  history  in  the  school  of  Political  Sci- 
ence, Columbia  University,  taking  courses  under  Professors 
Burgess,  Dunning,  J.  B.  Moore,  Osgood,  Robinson,  Seager, 
Seligman  and  Shotwell.  For  three  years  he  was  occupied  in 
preparing  for  the  press,  under  direction  of  Professor  Osgood, 
the  English-Colonial  manuscript  "Minutes  of  the  Common 
Council  of  the  City  of  New  York,  1675-1776,"  in  eight  volumes, 
together  with  one  half  of  the  exhaustive  index.  Two  more  years 
were  given  to  compiling  and  writing  the  "History  of  the 
New  York  Society  Library,"  a  work  issued  privately  by  the 
Trustees  of  the  institution.  The  introduction  and  first  three 
chapters  of  that  book  are  herewith  submitted  as  his  required 
dissertation.  During  these  years  the  writer  has  also  been  en- 
gaged in  Civil  Service  work,  lecturing  and  writing  articles  on 
local  historical  subjects,  private  tutoring,  and  teaching  in  the 
public  evening  schools  of  the  city. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 


This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 

Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


MAD  rf        4n(?^ 

WlMK  7     laob 

SEP  2  3  1966 

APR  27 1967 

OCT  1  0  JOft? 

i  yiuxA.  C-  /  Cj'^ 

APR  2^^958' 

JUN  2  7  1968 

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^r^^^Ur.                         Un.^gif;|S.oia 

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233(567 


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